


Fire In His Eyes

by Indehed



Series: Fire and Gold [1]
Category: Hawaii Five-0 (2010)
Genre: Accidental Bonding, Alpha Steve McGarrett, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Bonding, Case Fic, Human Trafficking, Kidnapping, Knotting, M/M, Mating Bond, Mating Cycles/In Heat, Mpreg, Non-Consensual Drug Use, Non-Consensual Touching, Omega Danny "Danno" Williams, Omega research, Rape/Non-con Elements
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-24
Updated: 2017-09-18
Packaged: 2018-11-04 12:55:56
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 15
Words: 102,458
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10991382
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Indehed/pseuds/Indehed
Summary: The body of a male omega is discovered on the island and when Five-0 are called in they are surprised to learn the man was a runaway from Newark, New Jersey last seen twenty years previously. Not only that, but he hadn't disappeared alone. As the case unfolds they suspect human trafficking and if so, the other omega who was with him when he ran could be in danger now.Steve McGarrett is not fond of omega cases, or omegas in general - he doesn't know how to act around them. But this case throws him something new when he meets alpha-hating Danny Williams. Both of them are going to have to navigate situations they never expected nor wanted to find themselves in and that's before anyone mentions anything about 'bonding'...





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> In order to understand a little more about the universe, here's a little chart about what types of pairings would result in what sub-genders of offspring:  
>    
> Alpha+Omega =Alpha or Omega (rare Beta)  
> Alpha+Omega*prime= Omega (uncommon Omega*prime) (rare Alpha)  
> Alpha+Beta = Beta, Alpha  
> Beta+Beta = Beta (once in a lifetime omega, alpha)  
> Beta+Omega = Beta (extremely rare Omega)  
> Omega+Omega = cannot conceive
> 
> Population - Betas 60%, Alphas 30%, Omegas 10% (of which omega*prime approx 0.4%)
> 
> And so that some understanding can be made over sexual organs...  
> Betas are as you'd expect, they're just like us :)  
> Alpha males and omega females are also as you'd expect them to be.  
> The differences come for alpha females and omega males who have two sets of sexual organs.  
> Alpha females have internal testes and they do have a form of penis, though it is smaller than a male and would only be so obvious when aroused, it gets the job done. They can be impregnated as they have a fully functioning female reproductive system.  
> Omega males have penises but no testes, so there's no sperm, hence why they cannot do the impregnating. What comes out of the penis during orgasm is the same fluid that is created to lubricate their vaginas during sex. (male omegas do tend to get wetter than their female counterparts). Their orgasm is achieved through penetration and stimulation etc, the penis isn't where the enjoyment is for them!
> 
>  
> 
>  **Alphas** command respect, are expected to be in leadership roles and still exert authority through intimidation and strength.  Even with just the tone of their voice, they can have betas and omegas submit to them. They're very my-way-or-the-highway and possessive of their home and family.
> 
>  **Omegas** are nurturing, and in tune with their emotions as well as others'. A stereotypical expectation is that they are more delicate and 'weak', though many would argue that in the modern age you can't label them so broadly. What some might lack in physical power, they make up for in internal strength and resilience. 
> 
> **Betas** are very loyal and work well in groups, don't normally like drama or high stress situations though they follow orders well and military betas learn to overcome their own doubts and fears to get the job done. They like order. Routine is preferable. But if you piss them off, they'll fight back. Very good for a protest march or a petition, but one-on-one and they tend to shy away from personal conflict and avoid arguments or emotional exchanges. They can be cowardly by themselves, but in a group, hear them roar. Good at thinking of the big picture.
> 
> Omegas are born with golden colored eyes. It's a marker that sets them apart from alphas and betas and shows that they are unbonded. Once the bonding process begins, there is a gradual shift that turns their eyes a blue or grey color - much like a fire being doused by a wave.
> 
> Omegas are rare. Betas are becoming the norm, but the government is still controlled by alphas even if they have made concessions over the years. Modern science is doing what it can to halt the decline of omegas, mostly through research on genetic markers within certain families who seem to give birth predominantly to omegas - which makes some of them more highly sought after than others and are referred to as omega*primes.
> 
> The alpha controlled government in the USA mandates that omegas should begin identification processes by age 16 and bonding/breeding by age 21 if not before. This is especially important for those identified as omega primes, as the more omegas in the world, the better (for diversity, naturally. It's got nothing to do with what alphas want).  These laws are considered progressive as in as late as the mid-20th century, omegas were expected to bond between the ages of 14-16 and only with alphas.
> 
> Betas are now such a large, overwhelming majority of the population that alphas in the government are wary about pissing them off en masse so laws now include provisions of free will that allow omegas to bond with betas if they so choose.
> 
> Despite the changes, some omegas rebel against the expectations and will run to avoid being registered. These days, many will wear contact lenses and try to blend in as betas, most hopping between cities and towns and working low-level jobs to survive off grid.
> 
>   
>   
> Fanmix:  
> 1\. Sabrina Carpenter - Run and Hide  
> 2\. Kate Voegele - Don't Count Me Out  
> 3\. Gemma Hayes - Shock to my System  
> 4\. Shane Filan - Right here  
> 5\. Bea Miller - Fire N Gold
> 
> (if you wish the link to where all my fanmixes are stored, just email indehed@outlook.com)  
> 

Steve McGarrett squinted into the bright blue sky. The heat of the day was making his t-shirt stick to his chest and he brought his forearm across his hair line to wipe away the beads of sweat. He pulled on latex gloves and stood analyzing tire tracks that were approximately fifteen feet away from where the victim's body was found.

"Make sure forensics get a mold of this," he said as he snapped a few photos with his own phone and bent to rake his gloved fingers in the ground nearby, lifting out a cigarette butt and putting it in an evidence bag. There were a few cigarette ends and an amount of trash in the vicinity and he suspected it would all have been thrown from passing cars, but they needed to check all of it just in case. "Chin, do we have an identification on the body yet?"

"Max was able to get a fingerprint match and by narrowing down the search to just the omega databases we got a hit." He turned his tablet computer towards Steve and the team leader was unsure what to make of what he was being shown. "His name's William Selway," Chin continued.

"He's just a kid in the photo. They don't have something more up to date?"

"That's the thing. He was a runaway. Been off the radar for 20 years. And there's more - his parents registered him in the late 90s at an omega facility in Newark, _New Jersey_."

" _ **New Jersey**_? What the hell is a runaway doing all the way out here?" Steve asked, walking closer and looking down at the body of the unfortunate man. He'd been dumped down a hill by the side of the highway; shirtless, shoe-less and with his pants dirty and ripped. He had no wallet, no watch or jewelry. Even a runaway would be carrying cash so the question was whether it was a robbery gone wrong, or was he killed for another reason, maybe because of his sub-gender? 

Steve hated dealing with omega deaths. There was always an added pressure from the Governor since the public perception of crimes like these were always more heightened than if an alpha or beta died. With omega births becoming rarer, and the impact social media had in the world today, he just knew that the moment the press got hold of this, he'd be in for a headache. Hopefully the Governor's office would take the brunt of those inquiries and he and the team could concentrate on solving the crime.

But Five-0 would still be under a lot of scrutiny to get this murder solved fast. The last thing Steve wanted was to get caught up in a political argument. Omega rights groups would grab hold and have a field day with it, while the government would use the brutal death as an excuse to say 'See? If he'd been safe with us he wouldn't have died!' This could easily start a new discussion country-wide but much like those that crop up about gun control every time there's a school shooting, Steve didn't expect anything to really come of it.

Kono approached the two men, having been talking to their coroner about what he had discovered so far. "Max took the contacts out. His eyes are still gold so he's not bonded, that's what helped us narrow down his identification. We're pretty sure he was strangled but there's signs of him having been beaten recently so Max won't rule out internal bleeding or head injury. We'll get more once the autopsy's done."

"Any time of death yet?"

"Between 8pm and midnight last night is as much as he'll speculate right now."

Steve looked around him. "Okay, I highly doubt he was killed here. This is a dump site. Make sure Max is thorough with any forensic evidence on the body and have HPD canvas the area. In the meantime, we need to find out how in the hell a runaway omega got all the way out here while off the grid. It's been twenty years of successful hiding, so why did something happen now. And find out if there's anyone else that could be in danger."

*

The four alphas that made up the Five-0 task force gathered around the tech table at headquarters. Chin was leading the briefing on what had been discovered so far, while Steve, Kono and Lou pitched in.

"Meet William 'Billy' Selway," Chin started, bringing up a picture of a thin, brown haired kid with bright gold eyes and he paired it with a recent crime scene photo of his body. "He was a senior in high school and beginning the registration process at the Omega Research Center in Hoboken when he disappeared. I spoke with his parents already and delivered the bad news. Turns out, he wasn't the only one who vanished at the time." Chin swiped his hand across the table and up popped another picture, this time of a cute blond haired, golden eyed, 16 year old boy who would, in Steve's opinion, have easily been matched with any alpha he wanted. "This is Daniel Williams. The two were best friends and ran together. The Selways blamed Williams. Said he was a bad influence on their boy and led him astray."

"So two omegas went on the run together. There must be reports on this," Steve  commented.

"Newark PD sent some files over," Lou answered. "I spoke to one guy who said that back then there was a cell of betas that helped omegas go underground. They caught the ringleaders, but they never found what they did with the omegas they squirreled away. Cops think the evidence was burned before they arrived. After that, all the cases went cold. I can reach out to the ORC in Hoboken, see if they've got anything on the boys that isn't in the police reports, but I doubt it after all this time."

"Kono, where are we on the forensics?" Steve asked with a sigh. He had a bad feeling about this case, especially if they had to unearth twenty years worth of history on their way to solving it.

"Fong is still processing the clothing and anything else we found at the scene. Max sent over some DNA found on the body, hopefully that'll lead to the killer."

"Did Max finish the autopsy?"

"Strangulation is confirmed as the cause of death," Kono continued. "No signs of sexual assault. Max estimated the other injuries on the body to be from beatings that were about a week old. There's no way any of those were from an accident or were self-inflicted."

"Maybe from an alpha that got hold of him?" Lou suggested and the others nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, but there's no bonding," Steve agreed and then gave up and pointed out what he needed to. "Okay, we're all thinking it but no one's actually said it out loud yet. We've gotta put human trafficking high on the list with this one."

"Which means other omegas could be in danger," Kono said. "Most likely Daniel Williams if these two stayed together."

"And if the traffickers know we found Billy's body, they could be spooked and want to get out of Hawaii asap," Chin finished their train of thought. 

"The clock is ticking," Steve told them. "Let me talk with Williams' parents, see what they know. Kono, check in with Fong, hurry him up as much as possible. Chin and Lou, check in with HPD, see if we got anything from the canvasing and talk with Vice, see if there's any rumblings about traffickers on the island, especially any dealing specifically with omegas."

As everyone separated to their own tasks, Steve headed into his office, pulling up what information they had on his laptop. Tracing the initial crime scene would be important and if it was human traffickers they were up against, Selway likely died right where they were holed up. 

They needed to quickly gather information on the vehicle involved including any CCTV from the area of the dump, and any DNA they could match up. Billy Selway had been missing for 20 years. The sooner Five-0 could give the grieving parents some closure, the better. And if others were at risk, he needed to find them.

He rubbed a hand over his face as memories came flooding back to him. While in the SEALs he'd been on a mission in Columbia taking out a drug cartel. Inside the compound they'd found three omegas who were illegally bought and used as sex slaves for breeding. The bastards had even snagged what scientists referred to these days as a 'prime' omega - one with the genetic marker that meant they predominantly had omega offspring. The poor girl had been bred so often in her captivity she'd forgotten what it was like to _**not**_ be pregnant. And she'd been mentally scarred as the cartel had taken the babies from her before she'd ever named them, selling them for profit. It made Steve sick to his stomach to think about what these poor omegas went through and if someone on _his_ island was into this kind of thing, he'd string them up himself.

The government was right. If they'd been registered properly by the parents, if they'd been looked after securely and educated about how important the centers were then they wouldn't have been put through the hell of being taken advantage of by criminals. The Omega Research Centers existed to keep omegas safe. Any testing done was just a by-product and consent was always paramount. According to some, the research centers were a kind of omega prison where they got experimented on so that mad scientists could come up with ways to boost the population to satisfy some ancient alpha gene to breed omegas. But that was a bunch of sensationalist, movie-style, conspiracy crap and it was a shame that some of these young omegas fell for it.

And not all alphas were fixated on being with omegas. Steve had never had the opportunity and didn't feel any less of an alpha for it. He'd only ever had relationships with betas and that was fine. Of course, betas could be flaky, could be closed off emotionally and when with alphas, were only really good for simple relationships and nothing too deep.

Steve had always been focused on his career. He didn't need deep, and Catherine had been perfect for him in that regard. On the occasions they got together there was no need to think of themselves in any serious capacity. When Catherine had been in Honolulu for a longer spell and had joined the task force, Steve had begun to consider if they should stay together and begin a family. But because Catherine was a beta to the core, she upped and left rather than dealing with things and talking it out. And he hadn't been surprised. Disappointed, but not surprised.

He rubbed a hand over his face. Betas he could deal with but he wasn't good with omegas. Their stronger emotions and caring nature never jibed with the barriers he put up. Betas may be flaky but omegas were weak and delicate and Steve didn't want that in his life. That constant need for affection that omegas had - he just didn't have it in him to give that to anyone.

If there were omegas out there needing rescued from a trafficking ring, he'd do everything he could. But he'd draw the line before he became some emotional crutch for them.

He picked up the phone and dialed the number they had listed for Eddie and Clara Williams.

"Hello?" a female voice answered. 

"Mrs Williams?"

"Yes?"

"This is Commander Steven McGarrett of the Five-0 police task force in Hawaii. I'd like to ask you some questions about your son."

"Which one?" she asked and Steve skimmed the screen to see that there were a few siblings, though according to what he was seeing, Matthew had died in an accident years ago.

"Daniel, ma'am. It seems that his disappearance from New Jersey has impacted a case we're working on in Hawaii. I'm sorry if this is difficult for you to talk about, but it's very important."

"I don't understand," she sounded flustered on the other end of the line. "How could anything to do with Danny be something police in Hawaii care about."

Steve didn't want to panic her nor give her hope. Right now he didn't even know if the family had been involved in Danny running, if they were sympathetic to why he did it, or if they were strict parents who had disowned the boys for leaving as they did. He needed to tread lightly but he had to be truthful. "Mrs Williams, early this morning in Honolulu we discovered the body of Billy Selway. We know he and your son ran away at the same time."

"Oh, no. Poor Billy. Oh my god. But... in Hawaii! How did he get there?!"

"Ma'am, we're still trying to put the pieces together, to fill in the missing years. Our concern is that Daniel could also be on the island and need our help. Is there anything you can tell me? Anything at all that could help us catch a killer and find out what's happened to your son?"

There was rustling on the other end of the line, he could tell that she was upset and in shock at hearing about all of this after so long and from someone so far away. There were muffled voices and he could make out some words that echoed what he'd been telling her as she relayed the information to someone else. 

Then the other voice was on the line. "Commander, this is Eddie Williams, I've put you on speaker phone. What is it you need?"

"I need to know if there was any communication between you and Daniel after he ran, phone calls or postcards... If there's anywhere you think he'd most likely have gone. If anyone ever approached you from..." he looked up the name of the group suspected by the NPD of helping omegas go dark. "From the OLP, Omega Liberation and Protection group?"

"No, there's been nothing all these years. We've had no idea whether Danny was alive or dead. If he'd run or if he'd been... taken."

Steve was taken slightly aback. Of course, he hadn't really thought about whether Billy and Daniel had been kidnapped back then. Their captors could be visiting the island or had perhaps been here all along. Lou had put copies of the Newark PD reports on his desk and he scoured them again for information. "There's nothing in the police reports that indicated they suspected a kidnapping. Was there something specific that would lead you to believe they were taken against their will?"

"Commander. My wife is an omega. We have.. _had_... four kids. All of them are omegas. My wife is what you would call an 'omega prime' these days."

 _ **Shit**_ , Steve swore internally. It just kept getting worse. "Sir, your other children, are they primes?" he asked cagily, not sure he wanted an answer.

"Matty wasn't, nor the girls. Danny... We didn't get the test results back until after he'd disappeared but the indicators were there. He's so much like his mother, it wasn't a shock to any of us that he would be. It was expected from a young age."

 _Shit, shit, shit_. Solving a twenty year old kidnap of a prime omega would be damned difficult. Steve actually found himself hoping for an opportunistic human trafficking ring that had stumbled onto Billy and possibly Danny only recently and who didn't know what they'd got their hands on. He really hoped the two omegas had lived a decent life, even if it had been in hiding. Anyone who could have suffered twenty years held captive... it didn't bear thinking about.

"He's a good boy. He knew what was expected of him," Clara told him. "He'd been prepared for it. He always asked his older sister what the Centers were like, we never thought he might be scared of them."

"We've spoken to the Selways and they seemed to think that Danny could have led their son astray, that he was the instigator in their leaving," Steve said, hoping to provoke some kind of response and was pleased to hear Eddie scoff at the accusation.

"They've blamed everyone but themselves over the years. Billy was their only omega child, they coddled him. We were never surprised he'd feel smothered and want to leave. If anything, it was probably his idea. Danny is the most loyal person you could ever meet and smart as a whip. If Billy wanted to do something, Danny would work out how."

"Is there anything else you can tell me that might help? Even something small can prove useful."

"You're in Hawaii, right? Danny hates pineapple. But fat lot of good that'll do you," Eddie said, grasping at straws. "He was a normal kid. Both of them were. Kids who loved sports and music and movies and going for ice cream on hot summer nights. That's what they said they were doing the night they disappeared..."

"Alright, if you think of anything, you can call me back on this number or go through Honolulu PD. I'm going to do everything I can to determine if your son is on this island and get him somewhere safe."

"Thank you, Commander."

As the conversation ended, Steve sat back in his chair and mulled over what he'd heard from the pair. Not just in whatever information they'd given, which hadn't been much, but the way in which they'd spoken. Eddie had taken over the conversation but that was just typical alpha behavior when confronted by an emotional omega. it was no surprise to Steve that Clara Williams would need the support considering how out of the blue Steve's call had been. But he felt like he was missing something.

Mrs Williams had gone quiet when asked about giving any information she could that would help. As the mother of the kids, as an omega (and a prime, no less) with an omega brood, she'd know everything about them. He would have expected her to give Steve every shred of detail, even those already in the reports. What were Danny's hobbies, what did he like to wear, or eat. More about the things she loved about him. But she'd been quiet and it couldn't have all been the shock. 

She knew more than she was letting on. And staying quiet was easier than lying.

With Danny revealed as a prime, it meant there was a lot riding on Five-0 finding him if he was in danger. That genetic marker that primes had that set them apart had only been discovered within the last thirty or so years and had been a key component to scientific study from then on. Danny could offer so much to help his fellow omegas and halt the decline, and the family had clearly been through a lot with the death of Matthew Williams at such a young age. Danny running away meant only the two girls had married and prospered. Danny was still young enough to breed and if they found him there was no doubt he'd get paired up quickly and he'd be pregnant by the end of the year.

He needed to talk to the Governor and update him. He was not looking forward to the call.

*

"I double checked. Selway wasn't prime," Chin said as the team gathered again. Steve had forwarded the information he'd gleaned from the Williams' so they had the heads up and could begin factoring it into the investigation.

"The ORC in Hoboken confirmed it. Danny Williams tested positive for the marker. Losing him was a disappointment they never got over," Lou followed up with. "But technically, Williams doesn't know about it - he didn't stick around for the results."

"Okay. The fact Selway was just a regular omega helps at least a little. It means I won't have the governor breathing down my neck about a specifically omega prime trafficking ring, but it does mean finding Williams is a priority."

"What _**did**_ the governor say?" Lou asked.

"He left me with the impression that if Williams winds up dead when we could have stopped it, he'll have my head in a vice. He doesn't want bad press for the island, like we're a haven for omega traffickers. And since Denning voted to raise the mandatory omega registration age from 16 to 18 he fears backlash. These two were 16 when they disappeared, clearly to avoid finishing the process. Opponents are going to say raising the age gives omegas more chance to be exposed to the 'wrong viewpoints' and run only to land themselves in all sorts of trouble. It's vindication for them."

"Omegas do have a lot of pressure on them," Kono mused. "I'm not advocating for anything either way, I'm just saying pressure can get to a teenager. It was the 90s when they ran, things were stricter back then. And wasn't there something in the 80s about a center in New York that was taking advantage of the omegas? Where the doctors were experimenting on them and practically raping them? I saw a documentary about it once. It was a scandal at the time."

"Being raised close to that might have had an effect," Chin pitched in. "And as a prime, let's face it, he'd have a lot more attention on him than others did. He might not have felt comfortable with it."

"Wouldn't be the first omega to run because he didn't want to be a pin cushion," Lou suggested. 

"We're getting bogged down in the ifs and whys of something from twenty years ago," Steve stopped them from speculation. "Do we even know for sure yet if Williams is on the island?"

Kono picked up the conversation with a nod. "I checked in with Fong and he lifted a hair from Billy's clothing. It's Williams'. So we know he was here recently and he was in contact with Selway before he died."

"Canvasing didn't turn up much. There's not a lot of people that live or hang out in the area that late at night," Lou said. "But not to add to the debate, is it possible that Williams is the killer we're looking for? We've got the forensics…"

"An omega killing an omega?" Kono asked. "That's unlikely."

Lou continued his argument. "Maybe Selway was sick of running, maybe wanted a family, maybe had already fallen in love and wanted to come out of hiding. Williams could have done it to keep Selway from exposing both of them and their locations."

"Okay, despite the parents' considering the two could have been taken by someone twenty years ago, the NPD never found any evidence of foul play and I'm inclined to believe them. So it looks like we have two runners who somehow over the course of the years made their way west and now they're on the island. We know they were both together before Selway died and we know the body was dumped off the beaten path," Steve spoke, getting everything in order. "Even dumb criminals would expect the body to be found eventually, especially by a highway that gets a lot of traffic. If Williams wanted to stay under the radar, you'd think he'd be smart enough to keep Selway's body hidden. No, this is something else and they were cocky enough to think they'd be gone before we could work this all out."

"So we're sticking with the human trafficking angle, which puts Williams in serious danger," Chin surmised.

"It makes the most sense," Steve said. "Lou, follow up on the tire tracks. Finding that vehicle is a top priority. Chin… we need to know how long these omegas have been in Hawaii. They got here illegally, either by themselves or they were brought here. Either way, maybe if you reach out to any CIs, check with Kamekona or Sang Min… someone who might have an idea of who could get them here and when it might have gone down."

"What are you going to do?" Chin asked. 

"I need to speak to Mrs Williams again. There's something she isn't telling us and I want to know what that is. I'll update her, see if I can put pressure on her to reveal something…"

*

"Commander, I've told you what I can, I don't know what else could help. My husband is at work, if you call him there maybe he can-"

"Mrs Williams, I am confident that Danny is here and that I can help him but I need you to be honest with me. I know you want to protect him, this is his life we're talking about. I want to shut down the scumbags operating on this island. Anyone who might be connected could have important information that could fill in the blanks."

She delayed and Steve imagined her chewing on her lip, on the brink of telling him what he needed to know. "Look, it's nothing… I don't know what you're looking for and maybe… I don't know… I don't think that bitch can help you, but..."

"Who, ma'am?"

She sighed, gearing up to tell more of the story. "Danny had a girlfriend. They were kids, you know? But Danny…. when he loves, he _loves_. But she's a beta. Danny had responsibilities, knew he was supposed to end up with an alpha and especially since everyone suspected he was prime. He was really popular at school, got a lot of alpha attention and after a while he wanted to get them off his back so he started dating her.

"Rachel always said the right things, but she was just having some fun. And despite that, he convinced himself that she was the love of his life.

"The first thing I thought the next morning after he ran was that the two of them had gone together. I called her parents to find out if they'd seen him and everything at her house was fine. She was having breakfast with them. She never left but I still think that was what Danny expected. Typical beta behavior. Danny probably poured his heart out to her and she backed off completely. He'd have been heartbroken. 

"Eddie is right about Billy though. He was a little bit older, was further ahead than Danny at the ORC and wasn't enjoying it. It would be his idea and Danny would have been the one to organize it and while doing so would have got it in his head that Rachel would leave, too. I'm sure of it."

"This Rachel, what's her last name?" Steve asked.

"She got married to another beta. I think the last name is Edwards now."

"Thank you, Mrs Williams."

*

"I got all excited when they said Five-0 were paying me a visit," Sang Min sat, legs spread under the table, hands cuffed in front of him and orange prison jumpsuit a contrast to the jet black mullet his hair was still styled in. "Now I'm disappointed."

Chin stood against the wall by the door, keeping his height advantage over the beta. Sang Min liked to talk tough but he always crumbled when Five-0 came looking for information. "Kono sends her regards."

"Ah," Sang Min replied, bouncing his head in swagger. "Spicey too scared to visit me."

"Oh yeah? And how'd you figure that," Chin asked, amused.

"She likes bad boy beta types. One look at me and she drops the husband."

"She and Adam are very happy together."

"Chick doesn't know what she's missing," Sang Min smirked and Chin rolled his eyes. 

"Piece of friendly advice; call her a 'chick' again and it won't be me smashing your head into a wall. It'll be her."

"Duly noted. So why the sudden interest in me, eh?" he asked.

"We've got missing omegas. Think they're being trafficked out of the island."

"Interesting but I can't help you. I did import, not export. And I don't deal in slaves, man. I'm all for an omega's right to choose."

"You're a real upstanding citizen."

"Damn straight," Sang Min agreed, not noticing Chin's sarcasm. "I helped people who wanted a new life, not to own someone else's. I got principles."

"But not everyone does. And you must have heard something. You keep people sweet, even if you don't agree with them."

"I might know of… something," Sang Min started, beginning to wilt under Chin's determination. He glanced at the way Chin's biceps rippled as the alpha braced his hands on the table directly in front of him and he began to weaken at Chin's glare. Shuffling in his chair, he continued. "Word is things go down at the Honolulu port."

"That's a big area, you wanna narrow it down for me?"

"I know they got a real, proper, legitimate front. Which means deep pockets. And if I say more, those deep pockets can afford someone to take me out," Sang Min answered. 

"Fine," Chin sighed. "Would the omegas have got on the island themselves? Through someone like you and then been caught here?"

"It's possible. There are many good samaritans like me. Of course, it still costs. You get nothing for free these days. But my guess, is if it's the guys I think it is, Hawaii is just a stop over between the mainland and China."

"Okay. Thanks," Chin told him. He'd got as much as he could. Though Sang Min hadn't named names, it still narrowed down the search. Of course, it also raised more questions.

"Send my love to Spicey."

*

"I can't narrow down the vehicle for you based on the tread," Fong told Grover as he moved around him, still monitoring for different results coming in. "The tires are a standard make and model. Used on different pick up trucks."

"You've gotta have something useful."

"I do," he sat on his stool and wheeled himself towards one particular monitor and brought up a mug shot. "Got a match in HPD's database to DNA found under Selway's fingernails. Ethan Kalama. Got a prior for drug possession and intent to sell and more importantly, one for assault."

"He drive?"

"He does," Fong nodded, a small smile on his lips that he knew Lou was going to ask that. "A 1993 Toyota pick up truck."

"You buried the lead," Grover shook his head. "Good work." He was about to leave when he turned back and gave Fong an appraising look. "You're an omega. You ever considered running when you were a kid?"

Fong shook his head, jutting out his bottom lip in consideration. "No, but I can understand why some do depending on parental pressure or what state laws there are where they live. I was lucky, Hawaii's pretty good with all of that and I met my alpha organically without help from the centers. And she's great, she always understood that I wanted to work even while having a family."

"I just don't get it," Lou mused. "If I was an omega, and I turned out to be prime…? I mean, you could have any life you choose. Could be with a rich alpha and live in luxury. Travel the world, be waited on hand and foot. What's not to love about that?"

Fong scoffed. "That, my friend, is exactly what a lot of alphas think. But some people want to be able to make all their own choices, even if that means hiding and working dead end jobs."

Lou shook his head again as he walked off. "I'll never understand omegas…"

*

"All of this was twenty years ago, Commander. I'm not sure what help I can be. Or what I can even remember," the woman told him on the other end of the line. Her British accent had been unexpected, her attitude was not. He recognized that distance and haughtiness and put it down to her being a beta rather than English. 

"Danny's mother seemed to think you two were serious. That Danny would have wanted you to run with him when he left."

"Even if that were true, I don't see how it's relevant," she began but he cut her off.

"Mrs Edwards," he started, unwilling to spend time getting a beta to be helpful. He'd have to be more forceful and have her yield to him with what he could put into his tone. "Danny Williams is in danger. What I've learned is that before he ran away he was in love with you. Now you may have broken his heart by staying behind in your safe life but I know it wouldn't be so easy for him to let go. Which means if he was going to contact anyone after he left, it would be you. If you hide something from me that I could use to save his life and I find out about it later? I promise you I **will** have you arrested for obstruction."

"Commander!" She exclaimed, shocked that he would tighten the screws on her so fast. "Look, yes, Danny may have suggested that we leave together. He may have thought we were more than we were. And, truthfully, I do feel some guilt that I may have led him to believe that. But-"

"Did he contact you?" Steve all but growled down the phone. 

"Yes," she sighed, giving in. "Yes, I have letters. I received one every so often for those first few years then they stopped. I thought he'd found someone, maybe settled down like he was supposed to."

"I need to see those letters," Steve told her. 

"I'll find them and email copies to you right away."

*

"Where are we?" Steve asked as everyone was arriving back at HQ again. After his discussions with Mrs Williams and Rachel Edwards, he'd received the letters and, considering how important speed was in this case, had sent them to Jerry to take a look at and find out if they contained anything to indicate where Danny and Billy had been, perhaps in code that needed Jerry's eyes to decipher. They were old, but if they could narrow things down to where Danny was likely to be based on where he'd been in the past, perhaps they could find connections between trafficking routes. It was a long shot, but Steve was going to exhaust every lead they had.

"All evidence points to Ethan Kalama. Guy's been arrested for assault which makes him an ideal candidate for this murder," Lou started

"He's got no history with anyone specific, but if he was selling drugs he probably worked for the Ochoa's rather than a gang. I've checked into his prison record to see who he served time with but nothing major pops. He seems very low on the totem pole," Chin continued. "Sang Min seemed adamant that any traffickers working locally are part of a much bigger organization."

"We don't have time to stake this guy out. Let's bring him in, see what he has to say for himself," Steve said and they broke apart to gather their gear.

*

The door slammed open at the force of Steve's kick. Gun raised and confident of his back up, Steve called out again that they were Five-0. 

"We've got a runner!" He yelled as he noticed the man fleeing out the back after having climbed out the bathroom window. He and Kono were after him in a shot and it didn't take long for Steve to catch up and tackle the idiot to the ground. 

"I didn't do anything, man," the beta under him complained. 

"Then why'd you run, huh?" Steve told him Kono handed him a pair of cuffs and he slapped them on Kalama's wrists.

*

He was about to enter the rendition room to have a chat with Kalama when Kono approached him, file folder in hand. "Hey boss, we got the last of the forensics back. Charlie tested some oil stains they found on Selway's clothing. It was crude oil, which narrows down our search to a refinery at the port."

Steve flicked through some of the pages in the file but relied heavily on Kono's summary. "Which matches with what Chin got from Sang Min about trafficking going out from there." He looked up at her again as he realized something else. "Sang Min also said the traffickers had deep pockets. And oil companies have a lot of money. This could be the break in the case we were looking for."

"We'll start looking into security footage from the port and the schedules of the ships coming in and out," she said as she left him to it. 

He made himself as big and intimidating as possible as he entered the darkly lit room. Kalama was cuffed to the chair in the center, light shining on him. He'd been left to stew for a while and looked worried though he tried to cover it was false bravado. Five-0 had a reputation for a reason. No criminal liked going up against them and certainly not some two-bit, lowlife beta that no one would miss.

"I didn't do nothin'," Kalama began.

"Except you did and I can already prove that," Steve told him as he stood in front of the criminal and crossed his arms. "I know you're involved with human traffickers, I know they work out of the port of Honolulu and I know you've got omegas you plan on shipping out. Ask me how I know all this."

"How?" Kalama asked, still cocky but with a fear creeping in. 

"Because we found one of those omegas. Dead. And the evidence says you're the murderer," he pointed at Kalama.

"Whoa, hold on. I didn't murder nobody!" Kalama's voice teetered on the edge of hysterics, arms trying to pull at the cuffs holding him to the chair. 

"I've got your DNA on his body. I've got your truck at the crime scene. But maybe you didn't kill him. You're just a low level scumbag, they probably don't let you near the merchandise," Steve taunted, trying to make Kalama's inferiority shine through. "They probably just set you up - got you to touch the body then dump it, and you were dumb enough to agree. They knew once we found it, we'd link it to you and you'd take the fall for them. They must be really good friends for you to do something like that."

Kalama snorted in answer.

"This would be your third strike, Ethan. Not only that, it's murder. You'll never see the outside world again. But I don't think you'd be in prison very long. The things they do in there to omega killers…I'd hate to be you if you know what I'm saying," he whistled at the end, making his point clear.

"I didn't kill anyone," Kalama said again. "But maybe I know who did."

"Tell me."

"I tell you and I gotta get protection. These guys mean business, they'll come after me and kill me. But I don't wanna die in jail or become some alpha's bitch. I want witness protection."

"We'll sort out a deal with the DA, but you've got to give me something now. Time's running out."

"He's a haole. Name's Turner. Used to have something to do with the Ochoa cartel before Five-0 took them out of action. Now he freelances and he figures the price for omegas will get him to retirement faster. He's got some kind of silent partner. Don't think anyone knows who that is except him."

"And it all goes down at the port? Where?"

"A warehouse. Close to where the ship comes in. That's all I know, I've never seen it. I just picked up the body from the back of a different truck and put it in mine before dumping it where they said to."

*

"It stands to reason that oil comes in and people go out. Ships come in from Africa and the Middle East all the time to these refineries and some of the countries it comes from are on Interpol's radar for slavery and trafficking. Theoretically it could be any one of a number of berths and there's warehouses all over that area, large and small," Chin briefed them. 

Kono took over. "We checked with the harbor master and apparently there's a ship offloading now and due to depart at 4am. The next one's not due for another week."

"Okay, they definitely need to get however many omegas they have off the island as quickly as possible. They'll be using that ship," Steve said, confident in their deductions.

Lou pitched in, having been watching the feed from the rendition room and having immediately researching what Steve had found out. He flicked what information he had from his tablet to the computer screen "Wyatt Turner. What Kalama said was true, he ran with the Ochoas. HPD never got anything to stick, always assumed it was cartel backing, but maybe it's this silent partner of his digging deep to save his ass."

"Well, not any longer. It's up to us to take down Turner's operation. Our priority is finding any omegas they have leaving tonight. Gear up and call Duke to make sure HPD are with us on this one. Get SWAT in on it, too. The more the merrier. I don't want to have to search the entire port to find where they're keeping the omegas but I will if need be."

*

"There's a lot of movement but nothing that indicates transporting anything big enough to hold people," Kono reported back as she kept an eye on the proceedings from a perch on a nearby warehouse roof. She used the scope of her rifle and night vision binoculars to keep overwatch for them.

Lou was coordinating with SWAT while keeping an eye on the main entrances to the port to make sure no one got out or in while the police raid was ongoing. He was too far out to be of any help at the center of the take down, but anyone who tried to run and he'd be there to catch them.

Steve and Chin were huddled behind an old chevy impala that was parked with a clear sight line to the ship. 

"Something's not right. This ship is due to leave in fifteen minutes and they'll have the gangplank up soon. There's not enough time left to hoist a container on board," Steve said. 

"Could we be wrong about this? Maybe they were tipped off." Chin suggested. "HPD have been asking a lot of questions while trying to figure out who on board is complicit."

"No," Steve said, chewing on his lip as he watched another two crew members board. Then it hit him. "Wait…. the crew members. All of them have been going on in pairs."

"Is that odd?"

"Not necessarily, but we keep seeing the same crew member coming back out of the ship alone. Back and forth… two go in, one comes out."

"They're escorting the omegas onto the ship in plain sight," Chin cottoned on. "Which means they must be kept close by. They wouldn't risk walking them so far in case the intimidation didn't work and they tried to escape or call out for help."

Steve lifted his head, keeping his gun in position in case he needed it. His eyes scoured the landscape, tracing the walking pattern back to its root. He squinted into the night and tensed. "Kono do you see that? At your ten o'clock."

"Is that smoke?" she asked as she checked through her scopes to the small, run down warehouse Steve was indicating. 

"Whether that's the omegas or not, something is happening there. Kono, keep the path clear for me. Lou, make sure no one gets past you. Chin, go with SWAT and board that ship now."

They all acknowledged through the comms as Steve began running towards the commotion. Another pair of 'crew members' were already halfway to the ship, one of whom was looking around and the other seemed to berate them. He had to take the chance while he could but didn't want to shoot in case the gunshots spooked anyone in the warehouse. 

He went around the pair and approached cautiously from behind. It was clear that the bigger 'crew member' was the trafficker as the other seemed to huddle in on herself. Steve didn't hesitate as he wrapped an arm around the tall man, cutting of his airway. He dragged the man to the ground and the omega looked on in fear, unsure how to react.

"It's okay," Steve tried to placate her, hand out and open, but the omega took one look at the gun Steve was carrying and darted off. "Lou," he said into his comms. "I took one out but the omega ran. She's blonde, coming your way, don't shoot her!"

"Copy that, McGarrett," Lou answered and Steve made sure the trafficker was unconscious. He kicked him onto his front and knelt on his back as he grabbed at his arms and secured a zip tie around his wrists. HPD should have plenty of time to come back for him before he woke.

He checked around himself, making sure no one else waas nearby and had seen what he'd done. With the area looking clear and Kono confirming that to him, he kept going.

He arrived outside the main doors of the warehouse and looked up. Smoke continued to escape from the rooftop but he couldn't hear much from the inside of anyone yelling for help. The doors were locked with a thick padlock, which meant there had to be another door they were using. He kept to the wall as he made his way around the back. After running the length of the warehouse, he paused to check for hostiles around the corner. 

There was one, hands on his knees, letting out a few coughs from smoke inhalation and swearing about a 'crazy whore'. "Hey!" Steve called out. "Five-0."

The man immediately raised a pistol. A stupid move, and Steve squeezed the trigger, releasing two shots from his gun that took the trafficker out. No one else came running outside, or from nearby, so he suspected the traffickers were clear of the building and likely any of their captives, too. Most or all must be on the ship by now and Chin would take care of them. It was now Steve's job to make sure the building was empty. 

He took a deep breath and then crouched as he entered the warehouse, lamenting the fact that he had nothing to cover his face with. The smoke wisped its way around the office area the door had lead into, but it certainly wasn't the main source of the fire.

He kicked in the flimsy partition to go into the main workshop where he saw that the fire seemed contained to a caged area in a far corner. Smoke billowed up from there to a hole in the roof but a thin sheen of smog was permeating throughout the building. 

Steve kept his coughs at bay and raised his gun again when he could make out a figure nearer the locked front doors. There was debris, and a lot of it, strewn across the ground. Old light fixtures hung precariously from the rafters and roof materials were in a pile by an old metal bookcase that had fallen; landing at a 45 degree angle on a broken table.

The man became clearer as Steve took further steps towards him. He was turned away from Steve, looking down at something. He was shirtless, covered in dirt and grime and breathing hard. He favored his left leg and one of his shoulders was at a bad angle - definitely dislocated. But he stood his ground, coiled ready for a fight, an old fire axe held loose in his right hand.

A body was on the ground in front of the man. Steve gripped his gun tighter.

Blinking into the heat and smoke he carefully took steps closer. The man had dirty, messed up blond hair. He was short but well-built with a stocky upper torso that tapered to a trim waist.

"Five-0," Steve said. He didn't shout it, he merely spoke it. Something made him tingle. He knew the man wasn't a threat, but he could be if Steve didn't tread lightly. Realization struck, like he already knew him. "Danny?" he asked.

The other man twitched, he turned his head towards Steve, catching sight of the Commander from his peripheral vision but looking up and further around himself, wanting an escape route. 

Steve let his gun fall harmlessly to the side and lifted his hands in a placating gesture. "Danny Williams? I'm Commander Steve McGarrett, Five-0. You're safe now. I'm not going to hurt you."

"You're a cop," Danny, or at least, the man Steve was convinced was Danny Williams spoke. He certainly hadn't denied who he was.

"Yeah," Steve said, giving the simplest answer. 

Danny indicated the body with his axe. "He got what he deserved," the last was said with a smoke tinged growl.

"You were defending yourself. You can put the axe down," Steve told him. "You don't need it anymore."

Danny just gripped it tighter. "I'm not going anywhere with you. I just killed an alpha, you think I won't take you on?"

Steve knew Danny meant it. He also knew he wasn't worried about his own safety - he could overpower the omega, especially now that he was injured and in pain. But the man was cornered, desperate. That was dangerous. The omega was the one who could get further hurt and Steve didn't want that. He had to get him to stand down and he wanted to do it with as little fuss as possible. Preferably before they both passed out from smoke inhalation. 

"I need your help, Danny. This whole thing, it's a big operation and we don't know if we caught all of them yet. I don't know how long they had you or any of the others, but they've been doing this for a while and I want to put every last one of them in prison. In order to do that I need you and the others to talk to me, talk to the police. You're all eye witnesses, you can ID the bad guys, okay? Please. It's important. To a lot of people. A lot of omegas. You can help make sure they don't do this to anyone else."

"You have all the others. The other omegas?" Danny asked, concern in his voice. 

"We do. We'll get them to a hospital. Get them cleaned up, get them help."

"Get them processed."

Steve nodded. "I'm sure the local ORC will get involved."

"They don't want that. I don't want that. We were, all of us, off the radar for a reason."

"It's the law, Danny. And I'm a cop. It is what it is."

Danny considered everything, weighing up his options. He looked around again, knowing there was no way for him to get out or get past Steve. He knew that even if he did, there was a swarm of cops outside rounding up goons and captives and he'd walk right into it. If he could even walk with his right leg barely able to touch the ground without pain lancing up it. Steve could tell the moment Danny knew what he had to do.

He dropped the axe. 

He seemed to wilt, strength disappearing quickly and Steve was by his side in a flash and carefully supporting him under his good arm. He glanced over his shoulder to determine just who it was that Danny had killed and he recognized Turner from his mugshot. The world wouldn't be mourning the bastard's death. Hell, Danny should probably get a medal for what he'd done, slicing the man's throat as he had.

"Let me take the weight. It's okay," Steve reassured him and carefully Danny responded, wrapping his arm around Steve's back. "We've got to get out of this smoke. Nice work, by the way," Steve indicated the body behind them. He was impressed that an omega could take out an alpha Turner's size. But as he got a grip around Danny's waist, he noticed that the man was all muscle and not the delicate omega he was used to seeing at the beach or the grocery store. There was certainly something different about Danny Williams and it made him itch with curiosity. He wanted to know everything about where the man had been for the past twenty years, what he'd become.

"Thanks," Danny answered. "For the record, I'd have given you a damn good fight."

Steve smiled. "Maybe one day you can try and prove that to me." His hand tightened on Danny's hip. 

Breathing in cleaner air made both of them cough with need, gulping in what they hadn't realized they needed so badly. The movement aggravated Danny's shoulder and Steve tried to help him, getting him to sit on a nearby pile of crates. He crouched in front of him and did a cursory check that it was only the obvious injuries that were making him suffer. 

"What are you doing? Stop fussing, I'm fine," Danny told him, pushing Steve's hand away from where it was perilously close to his bad knee. It was too dark to see for sure, but it looked like Danny's neck was bruised, his face was puffy and bleeding from a cut over his eye and his torso was riddled with damage old and new.

Steve winced in sympathy. "You know, you gotta be one tough omega to take all this and still be standing."

"When you've had a life like I've had, you learn how to take care of yourself."

"You're wearing contact lenses. Your idea or theirs?" Steve asked, drawn to Danny's eyes, wishing he could see the real fire in them but not wanting to admit it to himself.

"I've had them for years. It's the only way to pass for a beta when I need to. These piles of filth made sure we kept them in so no one spotted us and asked questions."

"Well, you won't be hiding anymore. And I'm sure your parents want to know you're safe."

"You spoke to them?"

"All part of the investigation," he answered. With careful conversation to distract Danny, he'd been able to sneak a hand to the other man's wrist and was taking his pulse.

Kono came tearing around the corner. "Boss! You okay?"

"We're fine. Warehouse is clear."

"Firefighters are here," she said and Steve could see the reflections of the red and blue flashing lights and the sounds of the engine at the front of the warehouse. "Ambulances, too. The omegas are with the paramedics."

"Send some round here, Danny needs medical attention. Best make sure they have a stretcher."

"I can walk," Danny protested and Steve stopped him with a squeeze to his wrist that made Danny look down at it, surprised by the action. But he didn't take his hand back. 

"Your knee is bad. You shouldn't be walking on it. It's either the ACL or you've damaged a tendon, I'm not sure. But if you walk on it, the doctors are going to have a fit and the governor will fire my ass."

"The Governor?"

"You, my friend, are important to a lot of different people," Steve told him, bracing himself a little for a negative reaction. 

"Shit," Danny said. "Are you sure it's too late for me to run again?" he asked, though his exhaustion was obvious.

"Sorry," Steve said with a raised eyebrow, his other hand on Danny's good knee while he kept a hold on Danny's forearm. "I'm not letting you go anywhere."

The paramedics arrived and took over, but Danny's hackles were up as soon as Steve backed away and let the two betas near. Worried about Danny's reactions, Steve decided to stay with him longer and asked Chin to take over leading the scene.

They got Danny onto a stretcher with a lot of protests and wheeled it to the back of an ambulance. The omega surveyed the mess of the scene himself and saw how the others, his friends, were being treated and demanded that he be the last one taken away. He wanted to see for himself that they weren't hurt, that they weren't upset. They struck a deal that Danny could sit on the end of the ambulance and observe, but he couldn't try and walk anywhere. It was the best that the paramedics would consent too, and to make sure Danny was true to his word to comply later, Steve stayed beside him. 

They both watched and Steve found it oddly fascinating to observe his team do all the work while he played babysitter. It was something he never expected to be doing. If any of them did this kind of thing it was Kono. Not because she was a female as much as she was just better trained for it - she was younger, had been in the academy more recently than the others and had attended various newer seminars on dealing with different types of people.

"They're just kids," Steve remarked as he watched a young omega walk to a police car, blanket over her shoulders to match the one now around Danny that covered his modesty and kept him warm.

"Most of them are. I guess it's rare for runaways to stay hidden for long. They had no idea what was waiting for them."

"And you did?" Steve turned to him again. The paramedics had taken the contact lenses out of Danny's eyes as they'd been in way too long. He'd been given eye drops for the dryness and the affects of the smoke and now the golden color was strong and vibrant. It made Steve wonder what they looked like when Danny was healthy and not exhausted and despondent.

"No, I guess not. But I've been around the block more than they have. Not as naive."

"I've seen what can happen to omegas who go through this, who spend years as sex slaves or worse. It's not pretty."

"Why are you here?" Danny turned his head to him, eyes shining; somehow reflecting the fire even though the flames had already been doused by the fire fighters. "You could have a uniformed officer keep an eye on me to make sure I don't run off. Haven't you got more important things to do?"

"You don't like my company?" Steve asked, a smile on the edge of his lips. 

"I don't know you. I can't trust you. I can't trust anyone."

"You can trust me," Steve told him. 

"Why? Because you're a cop? Because you're an alpha? One of the good ones? I met you five minute ago and I've spent the majority of my life doing everything I can to avoid people like you. That doesn't change because you happened to be the one to walk into that warehouse too late to back me up or affect a proper rescue. What's so funny?" Danny asked as Steve just smiled more and laughed at Danny's ranting.

"You are going to be a real handful for whichever alpha you end up with," he said with a shake of his head, enjoying the moment. "The kids are going to be cute, though," he finished with, feeling a swell of something inside as he looked into Danny's eyes again.

The omega was the first to look away. "I don't want kids," he said, sullen.

"I don't think that's true. I think you've just got used to a life without them. Something tells me you'd be a great parent. And it's not just because you're prime. I mean, I'm sure I read something before about how prime's are more nurturing than normal but-"

"Wait, how'd you-," Danny interrupted, confused. "I'm-… the test came back positive? I never knew for sure."

"I'm sorry, maybe it wasn't my place to say… umm… congratulations?" Steve shrugged a little, voice lifting in uncertainty.

"Shit- they're gonna-" Danny jumped down from his perch, landing awkwardly on his bad knee, jostling it, making him yelp in pain. Steve was instantly there to help him, wrapping around him.

"Whoa, hey, what are you doing? We have a deal, no walking, no moving, just making sure you're here for the others if they need you then getting the medical help you really need to receive. Remember that?"

"Yeah, I remember. Things change. Commander McGarrett, please, if you have any ounce of sympathy for someone who doesn't want their life controlled by the government… let me go."

"I'm not getting into a political argument with you right now. Just know I can't do that. I'm making sure you get to the hospital safely, and then if that means you get ID'd and processed then so be it. If you're seriously going to be a flight risk, I will put guards on you."

"Damned government brain-washed army men," Danny complained as he tried to push Steve's hands off him, but the alpha just held on tighter, always wary not to hurt Danny further. 

"I was in the Navy, not the Army," he corrected Danny as he got him sitting again, but this time pulled him fully into the ambulance and tried to get him back onto the stretcher. "And if you're going to fight me, the deal's off." He banged on the side of the ambulance. "Hey guys, get back here, we're going to get this show on the road! Hey, come on, calm down," he turned back to Danny as he continued to struggle despite his body's weaknesses. "Don't make me restrain you."

"Bet you'd love that," Danny told him, purposely pushing buttons to make Steve react to the implied accusation.

"Goading me won't work," Steve told him through gritted teeth though Danny's words had made him bristle. The idea that Danny would think he'd be like that - be a domineering dick just to get his way. He might be forceful at times, but he'd never take advantage of a situation like that. "Please just relax. I know you're not happy about this and I'm sorry, but there's not a lot any of us can do about it right now."

Danny stopped fighting with a frustrated bash of his balled up fist on the ambulance wall. He lay back on the stretcher as he gave up, realizing just how right Steve was. The alpha carefully made sure Danny's knee and shoulder were well supported while he watched as Danny lay with his arm over his eyes, shielding himself. His first thought was that maybe the omega was crying but as the man moved his hand to grip into the bridge of his nose and breathe deeply, he noticed that it was more in response to pain from the jarring of his knee and shoulder during his struggles than upset at his predicament.

Steve could see the tension under the surface, could almost tangibly feel the panic that was being kept in check. After everything he'd been through, maybe it was shock. But Steve saw Danny's strength, inside and out, and couldn't help but be impressed.

"You know, it might not be that bad."

Danny snorted and let out a huffed laugh. "Not all alphas, right? Bet your omega keeps your ego fluffed up pretty good."

"I don't have an omega. Never had one," he lifted his left hand to show Danny that he was missing any kind of wedding ring from his finger.

"But you're…."

"What?" Steve asked, amused by what Danny might say next.

"You're like a wet dream or something. Are the omegas you've met blind?"

"I'll take the compliment," Steve laughed. "I didn't expect an omega so averse to alphas and bonding to say something like that."

"I'm not interested," Danny hastened to add. "I've just got eyes is all. And now I'm very uncomfortable," he said and Steve was just about to offer help when the paramedic climbed in the back. "Oh thank God," Danny muttered as the beta checked him over again and asked if the pain killers they'd allowed him to take were helping. "Painkillers, that's what it is…" Danny mumbled and then squinted past the paramedic to frown at Steve. "You still here?"

"You're a flight risk, remember?"

*

At the hospital, Steve had been made to stay in the waiting room. Danny might be his witness, but he was in no way related to him or even a friend so he had no choice but to wait. He felt a tension in himself that he couldn't identify. Something was making him uncomfortable.

Danny had expressed some fear of what was going on around him. Despite his bravado, the man was in shock. Steve felt there should be a familiar face with him in some capacity while dealing with the doctors. 

Not that Steve was _familiar_ , but Danny had seemed somewhat comfortable in his presence.

He couldn't help but contemplate more again about what Danny's life had been for the past twenty years. The mystery was killing him. Danny was a book he just wanted to dive into; he was drawn in by the torn but pretty cover, except currently the inside was in a code he still had to find the cipher for and he knew the chapters were waiting to be discovered.

Kono finished speaking with one of the nurses and headed towards Steve, a serious look on her face. "Hey, boss. We've got people from the Honolulu ORC on the way over. They've asked that we wait to speak to any of the omegas until they've had a chance to see them first."

If the victims had been any other sub-gender, they'd have already interviewed them. Danny may think that being taken care of by the Centers was awful, but Steve was inwardly cursing their existence right now, too. The coddling the omegas needed was going to get in the way of the investigation. 

How the hell would they make sure everyone was rounded up without knowing who the omegas had been surrounded by while held captive? The longer it took for them to get the omegas to talk to them, the longer criminals had to escape the island. 

Not to mention this supposed financier that they had nothing on yet. Turner was dead, a huge dent had been put into the traffickers shipping route and their numbers, but Steve knew the case wasn't closed until they'd found the whole trail. 

He should have asked Danny questions while they had been sitting and talking back at the port. Why hadn't he?

"Where are we on everything?" Steve asked, feeling tired himself.

Kono glanced at the door that led to where Danny had been taken and she gave him a curious look. "You seem distracted."

"I'm fine. Just bring me up to speed."

"Okay," she said, but she still gave him a side eye. "We've got five dead traffickers. That's three that we took out as well as Turner, who Williams killed and a beta who burned in the warehouse. We've got a further seven in custody. The crew members seen loading the omegas onto the ship were legitimately supposed to be on board. A pod already checked by the Deck Officer had been opened again and the omegas were being led into it. There were crates inside with false bottoms that held basic provisions; food, water, etc to get them through the days at sea. But they'd have been in the dark and in a cramped space."

"And with the heat this time of year, their metal cage would get real hot, real fast during the day. Even at sea."

Kono's concerned look reflected her young age. She may be tough as nails, and she'd been with Five-0 since the beginning, but sometimes cases came along that shook her more than they did the rest of the team, who were much more jaded. "We've taken the Deck Officer in for questioning as well, but he seems legitimately clueless. He said he'd likely lose his job for this as the shipping company will make him take the fall for neglect. He's probably right," she said. "We'll keep him until we can check him out, make sure there's been no pay offs."

"We need to delve into everyone. I want to know who they are, where they've been and every known associate. And once we know who the associates are, I want everything on them. Something tells me that if Turner did have big financial backing, then this cell is the tip of the iceberg."

"Got it," she answered. "Are you staying? I'm pretty sure he's not going anywhere on that busted knee. And by now they've probably given him the really good painkillers."

He glared at her. "I'm staying… until the people from the ORC arrive and I can impress upon them just how urgent it is that we have _**all**_ the omegas sit with HPD to get witness statements."

"Uh-huh," she said with a sly smirk before turning to leave, phone already out and dialing as she got back to work.

*

"I understand you perfectly well, Commander, but my immediate concern is the health and well being of these omegas."

"Doctor Shaw, this isn't an isolated incident. What about any other omegas out there? Those already held captive or those in danger because we didn't know there were other traffickers not rounded up at the port! I'm sure the Governor-"

"The Governor wants this incident taken care of as a priority. This is the one that will be all over the newspapers by morning," she stopped in her tracks and turned to him. "I am sympathetic to what you need, of course I am. But we have eight traumatized omegas who need our help right now. And one of those eight is a prime who is in his thirties, who is unbonded, has no children and who, from what I can gather from hearsay, fought an alpha and killed him. The things we could learn-"

"He's not a science experiment, doctor," Steve stopped her and she balked at his tone, lowering her head a little to regather her thoughts.

"That's not what we do," she reminded him. 

"But he fled because that's what he believed. Don't prove him right by using him in that way. He needs help, yes, but he needs to know he's not losing control of his life."

She frowned up at him. "You've spent time with him. That makes sense, you rescued him."

"He rescued himself," Steve pointed out. He didn't think he'd ever stop being impressed by that feat.

"What did he say?" she asked.

Before Steve could begin to answer, there was a shout from behind them and a blonde female came charging up the corridor. "I'm here! I'm here. I came as fast as I could. Where is he?" 

Steve felt the hairs on his body stand up as if the woman was a threat to him. He must really be tired if just the sight of a strange alpha made him tense for a fight. She was clearly a doctor, and her kit was stamped with the logo of the ORC.

"Just being returned from x-ray. He should be back in a few moments," Shaw answered

"Good, good," she said and breezed past them, pushing through the swing doors that Steve had been told he wasn't allowed through earlier. 

"How long is all of this going to take, Doctor?" Steve asked, returning to his original point. "The longer we wait, the further away we allow the criminals to get."

"We'll begin moving the first omegas in the morning once we've got some fluids into them and made sure they're physically okay and cleaned up and had some rest. I'll call you once they're settled. Hopefully you'll be able to talk to a few of them by then."

"Fine," Steve said. He was still unhappy but doctors always got their way over law enforcement. Danny was the one he had a hunch would give them the best information but he seemed further off limits than the others. Hands on his hips, he stared through the small windows on the double doors in front of them. "That other doctor. She's assessing Danny? She knows his situation?" 

"Yes, she's well aware of his history and status. She's our resident expert in primes. When the Governor's office alerted us to the case you were working, she cut her vacation short and flew back. To say she's excited is an understatement."

"What's her name?" 

"Doctor Madison Gray."


	2. Chapter 2

Danny dropped his wallet and keys on the table and shucked his shoes. Desperate to get the smell of smoke and alcohol off himself, he showered before even contemplating any food. After dressing in just a pair of sweat pants, and taming his hair as much as possible, he made his way to the kitchen and opened the fridge, leaning on the door and staring into it. 

There wasn't much inside and none of it was very appetizing, so he just grabbed a chocolate bar and ate it quickly. He rubbed at his face as he heard the jangle of keys in the lock. The door opened and Billy stepped in, throwing a baseball cap onto the corner of the sofa before he fell into the cushions with a thump. 

"I need a new job," Danny told his friend, who looked a lot happier than Danny felt. "I figure the bar's gonna get shut down by the health department soon enough anyway."

"Well, if you wanna join me twirling signs then let me know," Billy reached to the coffee table for the TV remote, turning it on with a low volume.

"I hated doing that, too. Besides, it's a job for students not men in their thirties. You look ridiculous doing it."

"I thought I was just coming into my element with it," Billy answered. "It's not my fault you hate your job. Or every job you've ever had."

"You're right," Danny straightened. "Sorry. I know things could be a lot worse. We could be starving, homeless…"

"Or married to asshole alphas," Billy reminded him. "Dead end jobs are all we can safely get away with, you know that."

"I get that it's for the best but sometimes, and I hope I'm not bursting your bubble or anything, being on the run sucks. Very much."

"If you wanna turn yourself in then be my guest," Billy stood and made his way to the kitchen alcove, grabbing a beer from the open fridge along with some of the left over Chinese food from the night before. "Just remember to give me enough time to get out of Dodge first."

"I thought you were broody again last week. You were on the verge of giving yourself up."

"And now I'm cured of that crap," Billy said as he sucked a cold noodle into his mouth. "That's why I have you around - to stop me when I contemplate f _or just a second_ that there's a decent alpha out there that I might like enough to have a family with. Also, there was this utter brat of a child at the movie theater a couple days ago and it put me off again."

Danny snorted. They usually went together to go do things outside of the apartment, but Danny had worked too late to make it on time and Billy had seen the movie by himself. It wasn't uncommon for him to do so - Billy loved movies. Danny tended to pull shifts in the bars he worked at during the day, getting less of a crowd and usually it was just old men and drunks who didn't bat an eyelid at him. It meant it was easier for him to keep his cover. But sometimes he'd get out later than expected. 

Movies were one of the few activities they could do without suspicion of a night. Being cooped up in the apartment watching TV grew tiresome and most other activities would draw too much attention. Being anywhere near a gym or a pool was far too dangerous so they restricted work outs to running or aerobic exercises they could do in the apartment. 

Not that the apartment was big. Or had good sound proofing. Most of their apartments were like the one they had now - small, dingy. They were lucky to ever have two bedrooms. Mostly it was one bedroom and a fold out couch that they'd take turns on. At the end of the day, it was all they could afford.

"Oh, not to mention, that teenage asshole I told you about, the one who goes by every day when school lets out, today I swear karma got him good, he-" Billy cut off his story when there was a knock. 

The two omegas looked to each other in silent question. It was clear that neither was expecting a visitor and it was damned rare that anyone knock on their door. 

"I paid the landlord last week," Danny said. 

Billy put the take out container down on the worktop and made his way to the door. He looked through the peephole and then carefully opened the door, keeping the chain on as he looked out. "Can I help you?"

"Hi there," the voice on the other side sounded innocuous enough, but Danny wasn't able to see who it was. "I'm Harvey, I'm a firefighter with Fire House 13, this is David. Our unit was called out earlier today to the building next door where a gas leak was detected. We're working our way through other buildings in the area that might be affected. If you don't mind, we'd like to come in and quickly inspect the apartment, make sure it's safe."

"Uh, yeah, sure," Billy said before Danny could stop him. The last thing anyone wanted to do was rock the boat and if they were genuine and Billy refused them it would give off a warning flag. 

But Danny's father had worked in the Fire & Rescue service his whole life and Danny knew a little about it from dinner conversations and though it was years ago, he had retained some of it and already something didn't sound quite right.

As Billy released the latch and let the two men in, Danny's fears were instantly confirmed. There was no logo on the clothes they wore to indicate their Station, they were wearing the wrong type of shoes… and there was a bulge at the back of their pants and under their sweaters that wasn't natural. 

"Have you lived here long?" The first one, Harvey, asked. 

Danny didn't know whether to play along or whether to call them out, but Billy answered first. "Just a few months. We're new to the area."

"That's good," the guy answered.

"You're not firefighters," Danny said and in the next moment, the second guy had the door closed and locked, and Harvey had drawn his weapon. So that's what was in the back of his pants. Both the omegas lifted their hands.

"No we're not," he admitted but as yet, there was no real indicator of what they wanted.

"We don't have anything of value, just a little bit of cash. Take it and go," Billy told them, anticipating that they were robbers. The neighborhood was okay, but it wasn't the safest, so it was a good assumption. 

"Oh, you have something of value," the second guy finally spoke. While Harvey kept his distance, gun sights split between the two omegas, the other one drew his weapon and walked closer to Billy. " _Omega…_ "

"We're not omegas. How could we be living here if we were?" Billy tried but Danny stayed silent. He knew it was pointless to argue. But he was fine with Billy doing the talking as it allowed him to try and figure a way out of this.

"We clocked you on Tuesday," the second guy, David, brought a hand up and indicated in circles by his own eyes. "Timing is everything, huh. Your eyes gave you away when you fixed one of your lenses."

"That was no more than a few seconds!" Billy argued, dismayed that in such a short time he'd been spotted by the absolute wrong people.

"I told the other guys, stopping for pizza for lunch? It's good luck, man," David laughed at them and how fearful they were. He was the kind of sick asshole who got off on it, both of them were.

"I'm sorry, Danny," Billy turned his head to him.

Danny was still quiet as he considered their situation. The guns were a threat. If they discharged them, especially without silencers, then the noise would draw attention. It was the one upside that the thin walls had. Plus, if they were after them as omegas, then they wouldn't want to kill them. They wanted to take them alive and as unhurt as possible. Realizing this, Danny figured it was worth trying to make a dash for the bedroom where they kept their own gun. They'd had it for years. It was good enough for protection. And if he could get to it maybe they'd be able to escape the area before the cops arrived.

"Billy, you remember that time in 8th grade with the football players. We got round them, we can do it again."

Billy knew what Danny was referring to and smiled. Quick as a flash he yelled, "Go!" to Danny, who twisted and ran while Billy blocked the way and did his best to distract their would-be kidnappers.

"Shit," Harvey said as Danny disappeared. "Get him secured, I'll get the other," he said and barged after Danny, shoving Billy towards David to take care of. 

The alpha was able to knock down the bedroom door easily and entered as Danny was on the floor, reaching under the bed for the shoe box with their valuables. 

He felt his ankle being pulled and he kicked out, convinced he got the guy in the nuts as he was turned onto his back. He tried again to reach for the box but was thwarted by a kick to his lower back and side. Harvey then grappled for him, trying to get him around his waist but struggled to hold down Danny's limbs. 

Danny could hear commotion coming from the other room. He knew Billy was trying to put up a fight of his own and he had to keep going as well. If Billy could hold out just a little bit longer while Danny fought this one…

"Stop fighting, you little fuck," Harvey spat at him as he got hold of one of Danny's arms, but Danny swiveled and used the momentum to punch the alpha with his free hand, getting him right on the jaw and making him rear back again. He reached for the box only to hit his hand against it and move it further to the other side of the bed.

"Shit," Danny swore and then pain erupted again as the alpha kicked him directly in the kidneys. He pulled at Danny's sweatpants, stretching the elastic as he tried to move him away from what he had been reaching for. He was able to get hold of Danny under his arms and dragged him across the carpet, pants beginning to ruck down perilously close to exposing Danny's genitals before stopping. 

He dropped Danny and then came around him, sitting on top of his chest before taking hold of his head and banging it against the floor. 

Dazed, Danny drooped, his body going slack as he tried to recover his bearings but a cloth was shoved over his mouth and nose. "Fucking, little bitch boy," the alpha on top of him ranted. He slapped Danny's face, while keeping the cloth in place and tried to made him watch while he grabbed at his own crotch. "Five minutes with me and I'd have you straightened out. Bet you're fucking gagging to have a big cock in your hole."

Danny summoned what he could and tried to push him off, but the alpha had the upper hand completely now. Danny's shoves were futile and he heard the man laughing at him before he passed out.

*

His consciousness came back to him but he wasn't entirely sure he was awake. He blinked but everything was dark and hot. His body ached inside and out, his hands were held in place behind his back and the floor beneath him was hard. 

There was movement. A rocking motion and the hum of an engine so they were traveling. 

He moaned as he tried to turn and then coughed. That was when he realized there was a cloth bag over his head and going by the pull on his skin, it was secured with tape around his neck. The panic welled up inside him. They didn't know he was claustrophobic and damned if he was going to let them know so they could use it against him but it was a struggle to keep his breathing as level as possible. 

It wasn't that much longer before they slowed and with a few stops and turns they pulled in somewhere. 

Scuffle sounds of shoes outside the vehicle signaled that there were more than just the two men who had got into the apartment. The doors were opened and Danny could tell they were taking Billy out first. He had no idea if Billy was awake or how hurt he was and just as he was about to try calling out for him, hands grasped around his arms and legs. They didn't care what or where they were touching and he was sure someone just purposely copped a feel of his dick as they got him out and pushed him to the hard concrete ground. 

"Hey!" he tried to say though it was muffled by the bag over him. His own breathing was so heavy inside the hood that it made it difficult to pay attention to anything else around him and his throat was dry from what he guessed was chloroform but he tried again to get their attention. "Hey! Billy?"

He thought he heard an equally muffled 'I'm here' and then what felt like a cold shadow passed over him and a sly, oily voice spoke from above. "Take the bags off."

The tape pulled at the stubble on his neck and chin and the hood was ripped from his head fast enough to make him blink into the halogen lights that were suspended above them. He looked around at what was some kind of back room in an old brick building. The lights made the air look a sickly yellow and green color and washed everything out. It also made the man standing in front of them look more intimidating than Danny wanted to give him credit for.

Both omegas were prodded onto their knees, arms still tied behind them and being held by the bad guys at an uncomfortable angle. There were two others by the doors, both with much bigger guns than Harvey and David had earlier - both of whom Danny couldn't see. It was possible those two only did the collecting of people and handed them over to whoever this guy was for some kind of payment. 

"We were told to expect older omegas, but we didn't expect this," the boss said. 

Billy snorted. "If you don't like us, we'll just be on our way." He made to try and stand but was shoved back to his knees. 

"They said the omegas put up a hell of a fight," one of the bad guys behind Danny said.

"Hell, yeah, we did," Billy said.

"I can see," the boss mused. "I hope they aren't too damaged. Our buyers prefer to be the ones to do the breaking." He walked closer to Billy and crouched, looked deeply into eyes. "Very good lenses. You don't see the flicker of gold unless you get very close. They truly were a lucky find."

He then slowly moved over to Danny and crouched by him. He stared intently at Danny's eyes, so close their noses almost touched as if daring Danny to do something to stop him and masking it with an eye inspection. Danny never did like a challenge and met it head on. 

He spat in the man's face.

The boss simply sat back, wiped the spittle from where it had landed and instructed the bad guy behind Danny to lift him to his feet. His easy going demeanor shifted to an angry glower. "Spitting before I determine for sure that you're an omega just means I need to check in other ways."

With a nod from the boss, the man behind Danny pulled violently on his arms, forcing them back so far that Danny thought they'd be wrenched out of the sockets. He heard Billy yelling obscenities at them but the pain was too great and it distracted him enough that the boss was able to pull Danny's pants down and he ran a hand behind Danny's dick and stuck a finger inside his hole. It made Danny gasp and not in a good way but the boss leered appreciatively as he took his finger back out. "He's an omega."

"Fuck you," Danny growled at him, pants still around his ankles, defiant though he was all but naked and tied up. 

The bad guy behind him thrust his groin against Danny's ass in a vulgar warning before dropping him to the ground again. "Will we even make any money on them 'cause they're old? Maybe better just let the boys have them. Call it a Christmas bonus… in July."

There was a ripple of laughter from around them. "There's always a market for novelty items. American omegas who kept themselves hidden for so long? Both of whom have clearly kept themselves so muscular to help blend in as betas? I'm sure there'll be a prince or warlord out there who'd love to have them in the collection."

Danny struggled back to his knees, unsteady as his balance was off and wincing at the soreness of his arms. "Listen to me, I swear to God, I will kill you."

"And I'll get the rest of you," Billy joined Danny's defiance. "You're lucky our hands are tied."

There was laughter again and this time, the boss joined in. "You hear that boys? Better beware! These two certainly are feisty. Must be all that freedom they had for so long. It's gone to their heads." He came back closer to them and stood between the two angry omegas. "You're all only good for one thing - it's between your legs and feels real good around an alpha's dick. I suggest you learn your place now or whoever buys you will find very creative, _**very painful**_ ways to beat it into your thick skulls."

*

There were long hours after the boss had taken his leave of them that Billy and Danny were made to stay in the room with two of the alphas - the two that had kept hold of them during their 'inspection'. They didn't let them talk, barely let them move. Danny hadn't been allowed to pull his pants up. Any time he attempted to, they'd bat his bound hands away and just keep leering at him. He put up as much resistance as he could, mostly in refusing to keep his legs open when they tried to prize them apart and take a look or cop a feel. Luckily, they knew that Danny was merchandise not to be damaged or they'd lose out on a cut of the money, and the lure of that outweighed their need to get their rocks off. But it didn't stop them taunting whether by trying to touch him and Billy, or by grabbing their own dicks and making a show of themselves. Damned alphas.

The only thing that kept Danny's anger to a simmering boil was the semi-automatic weapons they were holding or he would have fought back. Billy was never as cautious as Danny and he did talk back to them. All it earned him was a slap to his face and the muzzle of a gun at his head.

Finally, there was movement, though perhaps they would have been better off staying where they were. They were manhandled to their feet, Danny allowed to lift his pants up and secure them around his waist as best he could despite the fading elastic and the rope around his wrists, and then they were led outside to the van. 

It wasn't long before they pulled up somewhere else. They were joined in the back by their ever present guards who forced them to swallow pills of some kind. Things were made all too apparent when Danny started to have trouble with his vision, and his head felt woozy. They'd given them some kind of sedative but they were still awake, mobile, pliable.

Gagged with something thin and black that held an awful taste, they were led out of the van and up something sloped. Danny could only make out squares… or rectangles…it was dark and everything sounded like banging and motors and yelling. Not the bad kind of yelling, just people shouting over noise while talking. People nearby who couldn't see them, who were maybe ignorant to what was going on and they were right there so close, but Danny couldn't call for help - a combination of the drugs and knowing he'd get all of one syllable out before being silenced by the goons. 

Docile with the drugs, they were led wherever they were going, and once there they were freed from the rope around their wrists and shoved onto hard, echoey ground. 

"Are you sure they've got enough stuff for the journey with two more people in there?" Someone asked, he wasn't sure who.

"They're not people, they're omegas. And if you're so worried about them, throw some extra water in the container," that sounded like the boss. The voice was even move oily with Danny's brain foggy and drugged.

"What about food?"

"It's only four days. They can ration," the boss told them and then there was a screech and everything became darker. 

Danny lay on his back. Though it was dark, there was some kind of light coming from… somewhere. Like a flashlight. "Billy?" Danny slurred.

"Yeah, buddy. 'm here…"

"Whatdya see?" Danny asked, still trying to blink the fuzz from his vision. 

"The sky is metal. And the walls. And the floor. Everything is metal."

"You're in a container. On a ship," a new voice said. It was young sounding and afraid. It spoke in a hushed voice as if worried the wrong person might here them talking and punish them. "The drug wears off pretty quickly."

"Who's there?" Billy asked.

"I'm… I'm Katie," the voice said. Danny twisted around as much as he could and then the girl swam into sight. And she was just a girl. She could be no more than twenty years old with long blonde hair and a pale complexion. "They're taking us somewhere."

"Us? How many are us?" Danny asked. 

"Now there's five," Katie answered as she tried to help him up. Her clothes were dirty and it looked like she'd been wearing them for days. Her jeans were ripped though that was probably just the fashion, but the tear on the side of her t-shirt clearly wasn't.

"Where are we going?" Billy asked as he got onto his hands and knees before placing his forehead to the ground as the dizziness waved over him again. 

"Depends. North is Canada, South is Mexico, West is China…" a male voice joined them, again sounding very young and Danny squinted into the low light to see him in the corner of the container. He had short brown hair, was lanky in build and was doing everything to curl into a ball and hide.

"They said four days," Danny said. "Does that mean four days at sea? In this?" He took in a ragged breath. The container was not large. There were five of them in here with what they needed to 'survive' for four days… but what if those doors never opened again. 

"Who has decent enough geography to know how far we travel in four days?" Billy asked as he turned onto his back again and rubbed at his eyes.

"If we go west, then Hawaii," the last new voice put in. She had a Spanish accent, maybe South American in descent. "If we go south? Maybe Colombia. I'm not sure. It would depend on our speed."

"When they found me I thought they were bounty hunters," Katie said as she sat beside Danny and offered him a blanket. Out of everyone in the container, he was the least dressed and the sweat pants he had on were not going to keep him warm. "I thought I was being taken to a center, but then they brought me to a warehouse of some kind and I heard them talking about buyers. They're selling us as slaves."

"They told us that, too," Billy said as he stood and tried to stretch up, his hands touching the top of the container as he did so. "Said about people… bastard alphas… who liked the novelty of American omegas."

"So… Colombia?" the boy asked. "We get sold to drug lords?"

Danny thought about it. Colombia made the most sense. "It's probably easier for black market trade to sell us in Colombia. You'd think Hawaii would be safer. US laws would see these guys banged up for life. In Colombia? I dunno, probably a slap on the wrist if you have enough bribe money on you."

Billy looked over at Danny with worry. "How you holding up?"

"Not good," Danny answered. "But I think whatever they gave us is keeping the panic at bay."

"What panic?" Katie asked. 

"I'm claustrophobic," Danny answered and ran a hand over his hair. "This space isn't… ideal."

*

He had been right. As the drugs wore off, he felt himself getting more panicked and hyped. His breathing was difficult and he was sweating into the blanket but he needed it for warmth. Only with Billy's help did he manage to keep under some sense of control. 

The other two omegas still hiding in the corners finally let go some of their wariness of what was going on and began to speak more. They introduced themselves as Josh and Carla. With a long journey ahead of them, they all began to open up more about themselves and their lives. 

The others were very young. Katie was 21, Josh just a year older and Carla was the baby of the group at almost 19. All three began to rely on Billy and Danny as their 'elders' to get them through this. To set up some kind of routine. 

All of them, at various times, tried banging on the container but to no avail. At one point there was a response but it was an angry one. But it did lead them to the discovery that at least one crewman knew they were here… and was in on it.

There were two ratty mattresses at the back of the container and about ten blankets in all. There was food but it was basic; just power bars, candy and potato chips and cases of water bottles. By one of the corners was a stack of buckets. It was obvious what those were for but none of the omegas were inclined to talk about that part of the trip though their use had been inevitable.

There was nothing else to do except wait for days on end. The rocking of the ocean when they hit rough seas at one point was the only thing to break up the monotony. There was no way to judge the time of day nor how long they had been there. Minutes and hours dragged by and all they could do was talk or just lie and sleep. 

Danny had constant spells where his claustrophobia reared itself to a point where he had trouble breathing through it. Billy helped the most but if he was asleep, Katie would help him out instead. She seemed the bravest and most together of the rest of them. Josh turned out to be timid and shy and very glass half empty. Danny could appreciate the attitude - he was like that himself at times and felt an affinity with him. Though while Josh had resigned himself to his fate, Danny had a burning hatred inside him for these bastards that he refused to let go of. 

Carla was different. Though she had run away from home, she worried constantly about everyone she had left behind, including an alpha boyfriend. She had run thinking the ORC would make her bond with another alpha and not the one she really wanted and was now learning that might not be the case and she missed her boyfriend. She had been on her way to give herself up and go home when she'd been caught. Danny suspected that as she'd come to her decision, she'd exposed her sub-gender, maybe while not even realizing.

Kids who had just gone to ground, those who had only recently run away, they were the ones who didn't entirely know how to act in public and not be omegas. Wearing lenses to cover the obvious physical give-away was one thing, but acting like betas convincingly was something else. Unless you mastered it fast, you'd get caught out. 

Most were discovered by police or homeless shelter staff. Only a handful would be caught by people with really bad intentions. And now Danny and Billy, after a hell of a long time, were among that tiny percentage. Maybe there was a complacency at work. But it probably was pure, dumb luck that led Billy to being exposed to the exact wrong people. Danny didn't blame him. It could have happened to either of them. The question only remained as to how the hell they could get out of this. Not just to escape, but to not be picked up by law or government officials who would have them ID'd.

The only indicator they had of anything changing was the feeling of the ship docking. There was no specific juddering or feeling of coming to a stop, but the lilting of the ocean had disappeared. Distant, muffled sounds of motors, of mechanical movement drew them to the fact that maybe they'd arrived. And survived. So far.

"What's going to happen when they open that door?" Carla asked. 

" _Who's_ going to open the door?" Katie put in, making things more complicated. "Maybe the police found out about this and we get rescued?"

"And then we get ID'd and sent home and to a local ORC," Billy said. "Whatever happens with that door, we're not in as good a place as we were before these bastards caught us."

"I still hope it's the police," Josh said. "There's bad and then there's _**bad**_. Being sold as slaves is the worst outcome right now. Which is why I'm pretty sure it's them who'll come. And we'll be in Colombia and not speak the language, except for Carla, and then we get sold, raped and die."

"That's encouraging, Josh, thanks," Billy replied. "Danny, you've never been so quiet in your life as you have these past four days."

"I don't care who it is, I just want the doors opened," Danny finally spoke and everyone knew why that was what he cared about.

"How long have you been claustrophobic?" Katie asked, which Danny found strange as no one had asked the question the entire time he'd been having his panic attacks. But then, talking about it would probably just make it worse so that might have been a good thing. 

"Childhood trauma. Let's just leave it at that," he answered and then stood to pace in the small unit.

"Isn't there anything we can-?" Billy was muttering to himself and then the doors began to creak. The others all shielded their eyes and shied away. Danny leaned down and put his hands on his knees, breathing in relief at the air that was beginning to filter into the container.

Billy was the one who was quick to fight back in some way. He grabbed for the nearest bucket and readied himself. Within seconds, the first guy entered. There was no way to tell if it was one of their captors or someone who thought they were doing good by rescuing them. Billy didn't care.

He upturned the bucket and threw the contents at him. Despite the circumstances, Danny couldn't help but be amused, but no one had a chance to show it as the others all came running in to stop them fighting back. The commotion and yelling were over quickly, though Danny did get a good kick in, hitting one guy square in the nuts. For his part, he ended up shoved against the container wall, breath knocked from him and a lose screw in the metal sliced across his bicep.

Billy had kicked over another bucket, forcing everyone to walk through the mess and he eventually was pushed over, the alphas who had kidnapped them forcing Billy onto his stomach and shoving his head into it. 

The docks were large and Danny could barely believe how empty this section was, but perhaps the time of day was important. He suspected they were experienced in doing this and the omegas were led from the ship and down the gangplank before being walked towards a warehouse. The three younger omegas were too scared to do or say anything. The did everything they were asked to, barely even looking at Danny or Billy, distancing themselves from the fight. 

Outside the warehouse, one of the alphas toke a hose to Billy washing him down but using the pressure from it to make a point. Billy spluttered and tried to stay standing but fell onto his ass. Danny tried to get to him, pulling and trying to get away from the two alphas holding onto him but it was useless and all he did was further wrench his shoulder until he heard it pop and pain went straight through his body like lightning. His legs went weak for a moment and he was hauled back up, one of the alphas realizing what they'd done to him and swearing about it.

Danny was marched into the warehouse first and joined the others in a cage like structure off the main warehouse floor. The door was closed on him, but he turned and reached out, rattling the bars, trying to call for Billy. 

The other omega was led in, shoes taken from him to make it more difficult for him to walk let alone run and his wet shirt gone. All he had left were his pants, similar to Danny. The alpha that Billy had doused in the bucket contents spotted him. He had also clearly had a hose bath as he was soaked through and was only in a t-shirt and pants; his bulk and muscle clearly on show and it instantly worried Danny. Billy had no chance against this guy, whatever he might choose to do. 

Danny called out, tried to stop things. One of the other alphas tried without any real effort to stop the brute but he approached Billy with anger flaring. He shoved him. Billy's back thudded to a wall and he stupidly laughed. It was the last straw for the alpha, who reached for Billy's neck and squeezed, telling him to stop laughing, that it wasn't funny. 

Billy had always been like this. Ever since they were teenagers. He played with fire. He toyed with alphas, made fun of them, refused to submit. His parents considered him a golden child and sure, he played along with that, but he was really the kind of kid who towed the line on either side. He pushed his limits as far as he could and he was doing it now in too dangerous a situation. 

It was too far. Everything was too far.

The alpha let go. Billy slumped down the wall. One of the alphas leaned over and Danny couldn't see what was going on but there was something terribly wrong. 

"Shit, man," the guy said. 

"What did you do?" Danny yelled over. "What did you do?! Billy! I swear to God-"

"He deserved it," the brute said, choosing to kick out at Billy again. 

"Yeah, well it's gonna have to be you that looses the cut from him being dead."

Danny felt the blood pounding in his ears. "No," he breathed. It was wrong. All wrong. Everything had gone so wrong so fast. He couldn't be dead, that wasn't possible.

"Hey! What's going on here?" A recognizable, oily voice boomed in around the warehouse. The boss was here. He'd traveled to where they were in style while the omegas had been in squalor. 

"Cletus just killed one of the feisty ones, is what."

"You saw what he did to me!" Cletus replied, almost picking another fight. 

The boss broke it up. He kicked a patent shoe against Billy's leg and sighed in annoyance. "We need to get rid of the body. Call Ethan, he won't ask questions. But Rick's right, the others will still get their money. You forfeit since we have to cover up this mess you made," the boss wagged a finger in Cletus' face and he actually backed off, which surprised Danny considering that in a contest of size, Cletus would win hands down. 

Danny rattled the bars again, eyes wet with tears, and pain blossoming hot in his shoulder. The boss turned his head and walked over to him; slow, confident. He spoke to the other alphas around them, and the few betas they had hired as well who skulked in the background, but he stared at Danny the whole time. "I expect the others will heed the example their friend just made. Try anything and they'll die, too," he then hushed his tone for Danny's ears. "That shoulder looks painful. Behave and maybe once we get to China I'll let someone fix it."

"China?" Danny asked, knowing he was going into shock.

"This is just a stop over. You'll all be going back into a container tomorrow night for the next part of your trip after which you'll be sold."

As he walked away, Danny called out. "Where are we?"

He turned and kept walking backwards to the door where they were dragging Billy's body outside. "You're in paradise. Enjoy it while you can."

*

"We can't."

"You heard what he said."

"You saw what they did."

"You're hurt. What can you even do right now? You're an omega, those guys are alphas and a couple of betas."

"They outnumber us, they're physically superior, and they have weapons."

All three of them were scared. Danny completely understood it. They were young, and those alphas were big and frightening. He was just as frightened as they were, but he could push it aside, push it down, and let his revengeful anger take over. But he still had to be smart about this. You didn't take out the big guys by meeting brute strength with brute strength. He'd have to be smart in whatever he did and he'd have to do it soon. And whatever happened, he needed to make sure he could disappear before any cops arrived. 

"We have no choice," Danny told them. "I get it. I do. But they killed Billy. They killed him and dum-" he had to control his emotions, he needed to think straight. "They could easily kill us."

"They're selling us, they won't hurt us."

"They're going to put us back in that container and hope we're still alive when it gets to China. Trust me, as much as they care about making money, they won't sacrifice anything for us. Which means if something happens, they don't give a shit. The way they treated Billy? That was practiced. They've dealt with dead people before. Maybe not here, but it's happened."

"You're just-" Carla tried to say but Danny jumped back in. 

"Guessing? I'm not. I'm good at this, at reading people. Always have been. The way I see it, there's three options. One, we make it to China, they sell us, and whoever buys us will rape and kill us.  Two, we die en route and get buried or dumped god knows where or option three, we fight back. We take as much control as we can."

"And we die in the process," Josh finished for him.

"I'd rather die on my own terms than theirs," Danny said, not sure how to really rouse them into following him. Not after what they'd been through and what they'd seen. "And I'll be damned if I'm going to do anything they want."

The others all looked at each other, then Katie's shoulders slumped and she answered for all of them. "I'm sorry, Danny."

"What about option four?" Carla asked from where she was sitting on an old oil can at the back of their area. The others looked at her to expand. "The police find us before we get taken from here."

"These traffickers have this all worked out. Which means they've been doing it a long time without police raids. We can't count on anything like that."

"Maybe omegas before us couldn't get their attention," Katie suggested. "Maybe you can. Rather than fighting when we can't win, maybe what we really need to try is to get a message out somehow."

"Maybe," Danny said as he looked around them again. The cage had very little within it - a ratty mattress similar to the ones that had been in the cargo pod, two old oil drums and some saw dust. Even trying to reach outside of the bars wouldn't get them much. They had walls on two sides and all the old, rusted machinery, planks of wood, fallen shelves and everything else that was just trash was too far away from them. "I don't even know what kind of message we could send."

"And you don't want to be caught by anyone. You want to get away from this and back into hiding. Damn what any of the rest of us would prefer," Josh said, sullen as usual.

"If I could alert someone, I would. I just don't see how when there's nothing here," Danny said, though Josh wasn't wrong in his accusation. But at the end of the day, Danny wanted to get all of them to safety and maybe that would be to an ORC... at least for the kids, and Danny could slip away in the commotion.

"You can think of something," Katie encouraged him. Out of the three, she had the most faith in him and was most likely to follow, but she was also the quasi leader of the three younger omegas, and she'd stay with them if they were too paralyzed with fear to do anything.

"I'm not giving up," Danny reassured her. He placed his hands on the bars again and winced as he moved his bad shoulder. He could barely look at it without feeling queasy. It was definitely dislocated and it would affect anything he did. Getting into a fight with these traffickers was the last resort. What he needed was a distraction... something that could allow them to run, and maybe alert anyone in the vicinity that there was a problem.

It had been difficult to sleep in the container and it was worse now. He encouraged the others to try but Danny was up all night. The pain in his shoulder kept him awake despite his exhaustion so he sat beside the bars and watched their guards. The majority of the traffickers stayed away from where the omegas were being kept and sat in an office area near the back door to the building. There had been a window at one point but now it was mostly a hole in the wall and Danny watched and listened as they played poker. There was another office area closer to the large front doors but he couldn't see who was in there.

They worked to some form of pattern, coming in to check on them maybe once an hour if he was calculating correctly. They'd walk up to him, sometimes rattling the bars and waking the others up. Danny learned after the first time they did it to lean away from them as the rattle had vibrated into his shoulder and almost made him cry out as it lanced pain through him. They were clearly at a point where they didn't care about what happened to him. Although they wanted money from selling him, to some he was more trouble than he was worth and Billy had proved that.

He hung his head. Billy.

He couldn't allow himself to be bogged down in mourning.

By first light, a dusty window at the top of the warehouse shined light directly into the caged area and Danny finally had more of an idea as he watched it sink down the wall as the day lengthened: the light had landed on the mattress and he instantly wondered what would happen if the dingy material with its insides hanging out was to go on fire. What would the traffickers do?

Fire. If he could light the place on fire at the right time. He'd need to make sure the others were safely away from the building, but he also needed the fire to grow large enough to alert the authorities before the ship left. Or if there was enough panic from the traffickers about a fire that they'd let their guard down and Danny could do something else to help. He should have thought of this earlier. His dad's position as a fire fighter and Captain meant he had enough knowledge to control emerging flames. He also wasn't scared for himself so long as he remembered all the advice his father had ever given him for if he was in a burning building.

But how to start the fire?

He kept watching, silently willing things to work out.

*

They took Josh first. Danny had held the girls back, protecting them and he was mocked for it by the two alphas who came, taunting him about how he was still trying to act like a beta when he was just a puny omega. Their arrogance still shone through even though Danny and Billy had proved that they shouldn't be underestimated. But he bit back his response as the last thing he wanted was for them to be more careful of him.

It seemed ages before they came for someone else. Carla was grabbed as she was nearest to the bars when they opened the cage door. They yanked her out like she was a rag doll and didn't care for her yelp in pain as they held her arm tightly.

"They took so long. Do you think it's really far?" Katie asked once it was just the two of them, but they kept their tones hushed in case anyone was listening.

Danny shook his head. "They won't risk that. We'll be close to the ship. They'll be careful not to take too many of us at once so as not to draw attention. Or they'll be working around gaps in security."

"How come you know all this stuff?" she asked.

"A lifetime of being on the run, mixed with what I saw of my dad's work at the Fire station," he shrugged. "When I was a kid I wanted to be a cop like my uncle. I loved puzzles and mysteries. Then I was told I'd never get a job like that because I'm an omega and I started to realize how badly people like us are treated. That we don't have our freedom like alphas and betas do, no matter what they tell us sometimes."

"I'm just sorry you didn't come up with a way to get us out of here. But that's not your fault."

"Actually, I do have an idea, but it's a long shot and I didn't want anyone to get their hopes up if it fails. Which it has a very high chance of doing."

"What is it? Can I help?" she asked.

Danny shook his head. "This is all on me. But I'm doing what I can to try and save everyone. I just want you guys away from the danger first."

"What kind of danger?"

"The alpha, Rick, I think his name is. He smokes a lot," Danny indicated a small pile of cigarette butts by the wall just outside their cage that looked recent enough that they had to be from these alphas. "So long as he's smoking when he next comes to grab one of us, and he finishes before leaving, then I've got a shot. But I need you to be brave. I need it to be you they take next. I need to stay here, and if I can get a hold of his cigarette end, I'm going to try and set this place on fire."

"But you're in the cage. You'll be trapped!"

"I'll worry about that when the time comes, right now I want them to panic. If they let their guard down and if we're lucky, the flames will go high enough that port security will call for Fire and Rescue and for the cops. That's our chance."

"Well, if it doesn't work, my going next or last would make no difference. How do I make sure they take me?"

"Don't do anything obvious, just be a bit closer to them than me, like Carla was before. Do as they say, don't try and slow down. Get out of here as fast as you can. Don't act different, just be as you are."

"You mean scared out of my wits? I can do that," she said and he smiled at her, patting her arm.

The two alphas returned, joking with each other before coming to the cage again. Danny would have sighed in relief if he didn't think it would be a giveaway - Rick had a cigarette between his lips that was almost finished. He flicked the end to the wall as he unlocked the door, allowing him to use both hands to grab for Katie. Danny glanced to where the cigarette gave off small wafts of smoke and he willed it not to go out in the next thirty seconds. They grabbed for Katie as soon as the door was opened and she gave him one last worried glance before she was taken out. Danny grabbed for the bars as she left, watching their movements. He was warned to stay back and to wait his turn, then they disappeared.

The moment he could, he got to his knees and reached through the bars for the cigarette butt. The move strained against his already painful shoulder. He swore beneath his breath and then pressed himself further against the bars, reaching to his limits until he got it. 

He didn't have time to react to the pain, instead he carefully made sure not to lose what little of the lit cigarette he had left. The mattress was the most flammable object he had, and with the insides of it already busting out, he used them as a sort of kindling and willed this to work. Slowly, more smoke began to rise and finally the fire began to take hold. 

He stood and dragged the mattress to the old oil drums in case there was anything still flammable inside them - at the very least, their presence by the fire might spook the traffickers. Any discarded clothing or shards of wood he chucked on top, trying to stoke the flames faster, higher. 

"Whoa! Whoa whoa! What the hell!" One of the betas who seemed to mostly keep guard and keep his mouth shut came flying inside in a mild panic. Seeing the flames licking against the wall, his first thought was to look around. No fire extinguishers - Danny had noticed that earlier and wasn't surprised and it worked in his favor. With no obvious water source except the outside hose, the guy made his decision to save their investment and opened the cage. "Don't try anything stupid," he warned.

Danny kept himself low as he moved to the cage door. As soon as he was out, the beta grabbed for his arm, yanking it where it was already painfully dislocated but then he coughed, and Danny, sore, angry, determined - he punched the man as hard as he could muster. The beta stumbled, and after making a grab for the keys, Danny used his good shoulder to barge the man into the cage with the fire, closing the door on him without remorse. 

The fire was growing, the heat was making the beta stay back from it even as smoke began to escape through the holes in the roof and muddy the air around them. He tried to reach for Danny, desperate to get out but the omega had no sympathy for him, instead he kicked through the bars, pushing the man closer to the fire. He lost his balance on the corner of one of the oil drums and fell back into the flames. 

He screamed; loud, piercing. It held a satisfaction in Danny even though he knew it did no good. He wouldn't mourn the man, but he'd never been responsible for a death before and that twisted his gut. He had to shove everything aside, just as he had with Billy's death because those screams were loud enough to attract attention. 

"What's going on?" boomed the oily voice he hated more than any other. "Get the omega and-" he stopped and the alpha with him practically ran into his back. The look of surprise on his face was telling. He had been waiting outside like a coward and had sent the beta into the building to get Danny, to stop the fire, to find out what was happening. That he'd come in to find Danny outside the bars and the beta behind them and burned to death. It was unexpected.

Danny began to back up, hoping to get to safety through the big front doors since now his closest exit was blocked by the two alphas. 

"You," the boss strained his voice. "I should have known finding you and your friend as we did was too good to be true. But like your friend, you won't be alive much longer to bother us."

"I'm going to kill you. I promise," Danny told him, worried at how long the structure would hold. He was sure more of the roof would cave in if the fire fighters didn't get here soon. 

His defiance was met with another laugh. Despite everything Danny had done so far, the man still underestimated him, thought Danny beneath him. Before the other alpha could do anything hot headed and stupid, the boss put his hand up. "I'll take care of this. You make sure there's nothing in the office that would lead the cops to us."

"But-"

"Go. This won't take me long," he said with a sly smile.

Danny had reached the doors and shoved against them to no avail. Locked from the outside, they were far too heavy to move. He leaned back on them as the boss watched, looking at Danny as if he were prey being stalked. He circled around Danny and headed to a wall. Danny squinted into the smoke, stifling a cough as the boss found what looked like an old fire axe and tested it's weight, beginning to swing it to intimidate. 

Danny backed himself to a corner and grabbed the only thing he could find - a thin stretch of piping that had once been part of the plumbing to a small hand sink. It didn't worry the boss, even Danny knew that it wouldn't pack much of a punch - certainly not while Danny knew he was struggling with a lack of strength and only had one arm that was any good to him. 

There was no point in waiting. He decided to take the fight to the alpha and walked towards him, putting as much swing into the piping as he could. The boss ducked the first swing, then blocked the second with the handle of the axe. An elbow impacted against Danny's head and made him stumble. He struck out with the front of the pipe and it hit the boss's stomach but it barely made him wince.

He tried again and this time the boss grabbed for the pipe. It pulled Danny in closer as he refused to let go. "If you weren't so much trouble, I'd enjoy breaking you. Bet you're a good, tight fuck, too," he gave a toothy smile that made Danny want to throw up. 

"And I bet you've got a small dick," Danny told him before he was overpowered. The pipe was out of his hands before he realized and in the next instant, despite the close quarters, the boss was able to land a punch on Danny's face again, then swept the pipe low and behind his knees

The next thing he knew, he was on his back on the ground and pain radiated through every part of him, starting at his right knee. The boss stood over him, straddling him and thinking him down and out. He lifted the axe and in a moment of self-preservation and desperation, Danny kicked up, getting the boss in the nuts. He kicked again at the man's stomach as he scrambled backwards.

"You little-" the boss said and dropped to his knees on top of Danny. He brought the handle of the axe to Danny's throat and pushed down. Danny struggled against him, trying to push up, even using his bad arm. His legs tried to kick but the weight of the alpha kept them down and his right leg protested badly at his attempts. 

He thought it was over, expected to lose consciousness any moment and then the roof whined, metal overheated and then the corrugated iron began to rain down on them. The alpha bore the brunt of the impact being on top and Danny could see that a corner of the roofing had sliced into the man's back. He let go of Danny and rolled to the side, allowing the omega to wheeze in a gulp of smokey air

Danny used the distraction and fought the alpha's hold on the axe and somehow was the victor. He didn't even stop to think about his fortune and instead turned the tables. He climbed on top of the alpha and though there was a short struggle, he got the blade of the axe down low and drew it quickly across the alphas neck. He watched the blood spill out, knowing the alpha could do no more. 

"I keep my promises," Danny told him. "That was for Billy."

In a last ditch attempt before the life faded from him, the alpha tried to grab for Danny and it freaked him enough that he scrambled back. As pain from his knee, his shoulder and every other part of him protested it almost made him throw up. 

He panicked, looking around for anyone else who would want to fight him but the warehouse was empty. The fire had grown though the fuel for it was around the walls and the center of the warehouse was mainly just smoke filled. 

He gingerly got to his feet keeping the axe in hand just in case, and looked down at the alpha who still had blood oozing out of his neck wound even though his heart must have stopped pumping by now.

He felt like falling over again. He knew he was too badly hurt to run. There was a temptation to just stay and let the fire and smoke take him. Maybe he'd see Billy again...


	3. Chapter 3

"Then what happened?"

"McGarrett. He came in," Danny finished as he lay back in the bed. He'd had very little rest through the night. He was tense and hyper aware of everything. He was on high alert and not just from the traffickers but because of everyone. He wasn't used to the attention, the scrutiny. Doctors, nurses, ORC staff, cops.

Doctor Shaw, 'Mindy' as she insisted he call her, was sitting in the visitor's chair beside his bed having made copious notes as he recounted some of the details of the ordeal in an abridged version, skipping much of the detail beyond who and what and how. Normally, he'd prefer to keep things to himself, but he was worried about the impact everything would have on the other omegas and in some cases, they really did need the help in order to function again. If he could fill in some blanks, maybe some sympathetic and competent psychologists could do them some good. 

"He took care of you until the ambulances arrived."

"He kept me in his custody until the ambulances arrived," Danny corrected her. It was illegal to run like he and Billy had. He should have been in cuffs, but he'd been so badly hurt even he could admit that would have been pointless. Though as illegal as it was, he'd never, outside of a movie, known omegas to be 'punished' for the crime in court… they just got a life as expected with an alpha breeding them.

"If you could find a way to disappear again...?" she asked, his words having reminded her of his situation.

"In a heartbeat," he answered. "But I also know I'm not going anywhere like this," he indicated where his knee was strapped then up to his shoulder over a torso that was now covered by a hospital gown. He had no chance of escaping successfully. "And by the time I'm in a position to put up a fight, I'll be at the ORC and under surveillance. Trust me, I know this is it."

She nodded sagely. "And I have a feeling Five-0 will be keeping an eye out. McGarrett certainly," she gave a sly smile as she looked down at her notes. "He was still here until about 2am when one of his colleagues reminded him he needed to go home and sleep."

"What was he still doing here"? Danny asked. Flight risk or not, surely a watchdog was unnecessary, let alone a highly qualified one such as McGarrett.

"Pressuring us for witness statements. And I suspect he was reacting to an alpha's instinct to protect omegas, whether he realized it or not."

"Then someone needs to remind the Neanderthal that omegas don't need protecting. Not all of us, anyway."

"I think everyone does at some point," she said, faintly amused by his reaction. "And considering how traumatized the others are, it makes sense that he and the other cops and doctors feel the need to make sure everyone is okay. You can deny it, Danny, but you're traumatized, too. You haven't had a chance to mourn your friend's death. And you killed a man. That must have affected you."

"I killed two. Maybe not technically, but it was my decision to let the beta die."

"And how do you feel about that?"

He shrugged. "I feel the same as I did at the time. They deserved it."

"Okay," she said, putting down her pen and looking like she might be done. "I understand that opening up to me, a stranger, a beta, a psychologist at an ORC, is not something you want to do. I'm sure given a little bit of time you might reconsider. Or maybe you would like to open up to someone else. Maybe Doctor Gray?"

Danny tensed. "The doctor who stayed most of the night? Why her?"

"She'll be working closely with you until we can find a suitable alpha to pair you with. She's an expert in omega care and did her thesis on exactly what the prime genetic marker does in an omega's body that sets them apart; any physical attributes, things like that. Don't worry, you're in good hands."

"It's her hands I'm worried about," he said. 

"What does that mean?"

"I don't like her."

"You don't like _alphas_. That much is clear. You will have to come into contact with them at the ORC. And work closely with them."

"I get the feeling she's hiding something from me. She has plans and I don't think I'm going to like them."

"Danny, the ORC is a safe place. We're not going to hurt you. Any of us."

"I wish I could be as confident as you."

"Well, once you get there and settled in, maybe you'll see for yourself."

There was a light knock on the door and it opened to reveal a nurse. "It's time for Mr Williams' MRI," she said and as Mindy welcomed her in, she began to futz with the medical equipment around them so that he could transfer to a wheelchair.

He was taken up a level in the hospital and spent the short journey being as observant as he could. Admittedly he was looking at what security there was, but he also wanted to see if he could spot any of the omegas that had been with him. Or any of the cops…

But it looked like the hospital was under normal operations. He only saw a couple of security. It was possible the cops were keeping an eye on an entrance rather than the different levels of the building. 

Once by the MRI chamber, he paused, unwilling to get out of the chair when the nurse tried to help him. He hadn't given this any thought on the way up even though he knew what an MRI was and expected to know what it looked like. But just in this moment, he froze.

As the nurse looked at him in confusion, Mindy appeared through the door. "Danny?" she asked as she came and crouched in front of him. "Danny? What's going on? You okay?"

"I'm fine, I just. It's smaller than I expected."

Mindy looked at the MRI chamber then to him again, cottoning on at least a little. "It's fine, Danny. It's safe. The container pods you were held in, it's not going to be like that. We'll make it as quick as possible and get you out of here."

"I already had x-rays and scans. The doctors should know what's going on with my knee from that."

She made sure to get in his eye line and have him focus on her rather than the machine. "You've been on the run a long time. We're going to take every precaution, not just from happened to you lately. We're working on a complete medical check for you. Getting an MRI is going to cover a lot of bases. Is there something else, Danny? Another reason you don't want this done?"

He took a few deep, bracing breaths. 

"You're not… you're not pregnant," she said, disbelieving. 

"No," he answered quickly, like it was a stupid question. Which it was. He may have refused the rape kit since he hadn't been raped, but that didn't mean he was hiding a pregnancy. "No, of course not."

She sighed with relief, though he didn't actually think she had thought it possible either. "Then what is it? You can tell me. I'm here to help."

He debated it a moment, but there was something innately trusting about her. She might be a beta and he worried that down the line she'd disappoint him, but in the here and now she did seem earnest in her desire to help. "I'm claustrophobic," he finally answered. 

"Oh," she answered, unsure what to do with the information at first. "Okay, we can work with this. The MRI is important and I don't want to pressure you into anything and I won't. But I think we can deal with this, huh? I mean, you're the guy who took down a human trafficking ring. This little machine is no big deal, right?"

"Is that meant to be reassuring? Besides, I didn't take down a trafficking ring. That was McGarrett and his team. All I did was try and survive."

"You sell yourself short. Trust me, there's a lot of people impressed by you," she said and encouraged him to his feet. She helped him settle lying on the MRI bed but he was still unhappy, his breathing shallower than she'd have liked. "You need to try and relax, Danny."

"I'd rather not do this," he told her.

Her eyes softened as she spoke to him in a reassuring tone. "I can't stay in here with you, but you can talk to me the whole time if you need to. Just lie still, close your eyes and breathe and it'll be over before you know it. I know you're not going to let this machine beat you." She squeezed his hand and then left and he was convinced he could hear the blood rushing in his ears so loudly that he wouldn't be able to hear anything else.

The radiographer that Danny had just had glimpses of told him the same as Mindy had - to relax and stay still as the bed slowly moved into the tube. He was going in head first and the further he got the more he didn't like it. He didn't even think his claustrophobia was so bad - there was a clear exit if he needed it and the tube didn't close over, but it was stifling to be inside and he could admit that four days in a container pod had affected him more than he realized.

He had been warned about the loud noises but they still made him jump when they started. "How's everything going in there?" Mindy asked.

"I dunno," Danny answered, trying not to fidget. "But I think if I don't get out of this box soon, I might lose it."

"Listen to me, Danny. Everything is okay. It's just neurotransmitters in your brain sending the wrong signal, activating your sympathetic nervous system. You just need to ride this out until your parasympathetic nervous system can restore your body to a normal state."

"Okay, that wasn't English so it's not helping."

"You're body is lying to you. It's telling you there's danger when there isn't any. There's no real threat and you're completely safe. We'll do what we need to as quickly as we can."

He quietly repeated her words to himself, mouthing them over and over, occasionally responding to questions until finally he was told it was done and he was brought back out of the chamber. Relieved that he was finished being tested for the time being, he was sullen as they wheeled his chair back to his room.

As they turned the last corner, he saw down the corridor that McGarrett was by the nurse's station. Their eyes met despite the distance and the cop began walking towards Danny, ignoring a nurse telling him to wait.

Mindy made sure Danny was rolled into his room and he craned his neck to see as the door was closed, faint voices of concern were all he heard.

*

"Commander, I said I would inform you at the appropriate time," Doctor Show spoke to him, a hand up to halt him from going any further. He was frustrated at the wait.

He'd gone home in the early hours of the morning to get some sleep, not just at Kono's prodding but he knew the omegas were needing rest and there was no way he was going to get near them at the time. But he'd arrived back early to try again. It wasn't that the investigation had stalled, but it was going slowly and he was convinced that speaking to his witnesses would speed things up again.

Those who had been caught at the scene were being interrogated but they weren't talking much as they were too scared of repercussions from those higher up the food chain. Chin was trying to follow Turner's money trail, but it was well hidden. And the forensic teams were going over the cargo ship and warehouse but results from those took time and with the fire a lot of possible evidence had been lost. 

"Look, I know you think that these omegas are too traumatized right now, but I think you're selling them a little short."

"And where did you get your medical degree, Commander?" she asked, sarcastically.

"I don't dispute that some of them need that help and time, but I spoke with Danny at the scene. He's clearly a strong omega. And beyond that, I'm sure he's the one who could be the most helpful. In this case, I think you're being overprotective of him. Let me talk to him, you can even be right there in the room."

"Why don't you give me a list of questions and I'll see if I can get some answers for you," she compromised but Steve shook his head.

"Speaking to witnesses is about adapting questions to their mental state and to how they answer. It's an organic process. I need to be the one to question him."

" _You_ need to be? _**Specifically**_ you?" she raised an eyebrow and seemed faintly amused but her determination to block him was at the forefront of her tone.

"No, not me _specifically_ , but it would be best. I'm right here, just let me talk to him. Five minutes."

"Honestly, Commander, an hour ago and I would have given it a lot more serious consideration. But I can't at the moment."

"Why not?"

She hesitated and he predicted she'd talk about doctor/patient confidentiality, but without a decent reason, he would keep pestering her.

"There was a small incident-"

"Is he okay?" Steve interrupted, concern evident.

"He's fine. It just showcased for me that trauma manifests in different ways. He... struggled, during a routine test. As much as I got to the bottom of his fears, there could be more underlying issues. I'd rather wait a little longer while I gauge that."

"He's the key to this investigation," Steve pointed at the door blocking his path. "I spent a short time with him and even I know that he would rather work with me to finish this, to shut down this ring for good and protect other omegas, than sit on the sidelines worried that he might react badly to something. At least ask him if he's willing."

"Very well, Commander, I'll ask. But I guarantee you that you will not speak to him while in the hospital. Once he's moved to the ORC in a few hours you can try again."

"Thank you," he said, feeling like they might finally be getting somewhere. He knew the other omegas had already been transported but Danny's injuries were more severe and he would be the last to leave. As an alpha, he felt his own need to protect but in this case the way he wanted to do it and the way the ORC did were clashing.

*

Doctor Gray had returned. She was all smiles, but Danny didn't find any of it sincere - not in the way she said it was. Her smiles were for herself, for what she could achieve by 'studying' the omegas, studying Danny. He wasn't stupid and he'd always had good instincts with people's motivations.

She had repeated some basic health checks - his blood had been drawn again, his temperature and blood pressure taken. She stripped back the blanket so that she could check his knee and then as she finished she moved his leg to the side. She then had him lift his other leg into a position that immediately made him wary as to what it exposed. She had dug into her medical bag and brought out something sealed that she ripped open.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"Checking your health," she said and Danny immediately closed his legs as she focused her eyes between them. She reached out and tried to move him back into the position she wanted. "All omegas get cervical screenings. Alpha and Beta women do, too. It's perfectly normal to do the test. Considering your situation, I'll be as gentle as I can."

"You can be gentle doing something else, I'm not letting you touch me."

She sat beside him, looking at him like he was being a child. "You're an adult, of course you have the right to refuse. But it is in your best interests. There's a lot we can tell from this. And if it comes down to it, I can speak to your parents about all the tests you're refusing and have them sign a waiver to allow it. Your father still has medical powers over you."

"Because I'm an omega and I still have to have a caretaker, no matter what my age or status," Danny said through gritted teeth. Whether it was his father or a soon-to-be husband or wife, he'd never be truly allowed to make all his own decisions. Whether that was to do with law or medical reasons, omegas were not truly independent and having lived as a beta for so long he'd forgotten about the kinds of vague, passive threats that omegas got in things that could be considered everyday situations.

"You can fight it. Of course you can and I won't stop you. But consider the impact on your parents having to involve them. We'd need to go over every single test with them and with a lawyer they'd need to pay out for in the process. It's already expensive for them to fly to Honolulu to reunite with you, do you really want to cost them more money?"

Danny bit his tongue. He wanted to call her out on the emotional blackmail but she was also right. He didn't want to be a financial burden on them and he certainly didn't want them to know the ins and outs of every test that they wanted to perform on him. Gray had made similar noises after he refused the rape kit, but Mindy had been able to broker that peace. This one might be a step too far.

"Fine, do your test," he said.

"Good boy," she pandered to him, running a hand through his hair before moving again to position herself. "Just relax," she told him as she opened his legs again. She slid a cushion underneath him and used a gloved hand to move his dick to allow for better access - a better view.

The speculum that she had taken from its sterile bag made him tense and she waited for him to take a breath and let it out before pushing it into him. He tensed again at the intrusion. He'd touched himself over the years but he'd never had anyone else down there, and the clinical nature was another thing. And he didn't trust the doctor.

A large part of his mind warned him that he was the one being stupid - that he was on edge after being kidnapped by slavers and the way they had attempted to touch him and had leered and commented on what they wanted to do. He'd given Doctor Shaw an abbreviated version of what had been said and he didn't want to dwell in those memories but they came to the front of his mind during the examination.

Gray told him to relax, told him not to lift from the bed each time he tensed. He swore she was taking longer than necessary and he felt open and vulnerable to her as she inserted whatever kind of different swabs she was using to take multiple samples from him.

As she finished and removed the instrument, her fingers rubbed over and into his opening in something disguised as being soothing but it had no such effect. Her thumb flicked measuredly over his nub and in his natural wetness and then she touched his dick again. "Cervical screenings are usually done every few years. They'll get much easier once you've bonded and had sex with an alpha."

He closed his legs to her and it was that action that made her stop glancing at his lower body. He was still in two minds over whether things were normal or not, but he was pessimistic about omega rights and frankly, there were no cameras in this room to stop Gray doing what she wanted. He doubted she'd get away with things once at the ORC as those were highly regulated these days and probably had cameras in every crevice to make sure no one was taken advantage of while simultaneously ridding the omegas of their freedom and privacy. And he knew this because the brief time he'd spent in one as a teenager had come only a decade or so after the scandals of the 80s. 

Damned alphas and their superiority complexes. Omegas were not possessions. And they weren't baby making machines. He didn't know why he was surprised - he'd never met an alpha who wasn't an asshole. 

*

"Okay, I think I've got something," Jerry said as he stood at the center of the tech table with the rest of five-0 on either side of him. He'd got used to working with the alphas but was still intimidated by them so usually only joined them in the offices when he knew it could be important. 

He flicked up digital copies of the letters Danny had sent to Rachel years ago. 

"Williams only ever wrote to Rachel Edwards just as they were at the end of their stay in a particular city. My guess is he was smart, he knew the post mark would indicate where they were and in case the girlfriend was passing the information on, then they'd be gone from there before local police were informed. They also kept mostly to the bigger cities - those are much easier to disappear into a crowd, tend to be more liberal but also more people just mind their own business. He wrote to her for about six years during which they moved through Boston, Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Cincinnatti and the last letter was from Chicago."

"So they tended to stick to the bigger cities in more northern States," Kono surmised. 

"Yes, and working their way west. Going by the distance patterns and the approximate time they would spend in each place, I began to narrow down where they might have last been and included Canada in the mix just in case. Once I had that list I narrowed it down to look for cities nearer ports, since we know the traffickers got the omegas onto the island using cargo containers. That gave me about 3 cities that were the most likely to be where he'd been."

"This would be a lot easier if we could just ask him," Lou shook his head. "ORC protocols can be a pain in the ass."

"Tell me about it," Steve agreed. "But for all we know there's a hidden network of omegas in these cities and he and the others may not want to tell us where they've been in case it exposes them."

"I think I got the right one though," Jerry said, as the others thought narrowing it down to three possibilities was the best he could do. "DS Oil."

"The Oil company that supplies Honolulu port," Chin expanded. 

"Yes," Jerry nodded. "They'd just received a shipment from China and that was the ship you raided. They also ship to the mainland and within the last seven days they were in Portland, Oregon."

"They have an office on the island, a pretty big one," Chin said. "They treat Hawaii as a bridge to the mainland for countries like China, South Korea, Taiwan and others."

"And maybe that counts for smuggling people as well as bringing oil to the refineries," Lou finished. 

"Good work, Jerry," Steve patted the beta on the shoulder. "Chin, Lou, update Portland PD on the situation, get them to look into the their port and find out if Wyatt Turner had been spotted recently. Kono and I will pay 'big oil' a visit, see what shakes loose. Before we go, Jerry, can I talk to you in my office a second?"

"Sure," Jerry answered and the two went behind closed doors. 

Steve crossed his arms before saying anything. "What else is in the letters?"

"Nothing much. I know you thought there might be some coded message in them but I don't see anything. He kept things pretty vague, doesn't give much away about what they do for work, or where they live. But I got the impression it's a string of dead end jobs. I think wherever they were they had good internet access though."

"I thought they were living off grid?"

"I doubt they had their own electronics beyond burn phones but that wouldn't stop them visiting a public library for access. Williams stopped writing to Rachel once she was engaged. His last letter doesn't mention it per se, but he talks about how they both need to move on since he won't be going back and she deserves to be happy, stuff like that. But the timing's pretty obvious. He must have been checking up on news from home."

"He still loved her even though she didn't run with him? She let him down and he kept writing to her, kept trying?" Steve asked, a little incredulous that Danny might still be in love with her to this day. She was a beta, she'd just acted like that sub-gender always do and Danny deserved better than a flighty bitch who was all talk and no action. He was passionate and strong and needed someone who appreciated that. He felt himself growing angry at the thought that Danny could be so taken advantage of and neglected.

"I think as he grew up he realized it wasn't meant to be," Jerry answered. "He says something like that in the last couple of letters. Even if she hadn't married when she did, he would have stopped writing. It was a link to home that he couldn't quite give up for a long time until he was older and severed the last tie. I don't see how this relates to the case but I can-"

"No, that's okay, Jerry. Maybe just do me a favor and see if Portland's public library has CCTV footage for the last couple of weeks they can share with you. See if Danny is caught on it. It would prove he'd been in town."

*

"DS Oil is clean, no pun intended," Kono told him, checking her emails on her phone as they pulled up outside the front of the office building emblazoned with the company logo. "I checked with the FBI and they don't have any active investigations into the company and I can't find anything that would indicate any part of it being a front for something else."

"Maybe it's not the company itself that's the problem. It just takes a couple of employees to use company resources for their own gain," Steve said as they got out the truck and headed inside.

After introducing themselves at reception they made it clear they wanted to talk to someone high up the chain and would brook no argument over it. After waiting for ten or so minutes, they were greeted by an alpha in an expensive suit. He was tall with jet black, greased back hair and a dazzling white smile. He was accompanied by another man in a more relaxed polo shirt who held himself like military.

"I'm Curtis Lyons, one of the Senior VPs of DS Oil."

"Koa Bankfoot, head of Security," the muscled man shook Steve's hand.

"Commander McGarrett, Five-0, this is Officer Kalakaua."

"What can I do for you?" Lyons asked, standing in a relaxed posture. "I assume this is in connection with that incident at the Honolulu Port last night?"

Steve bristled at the description. 'Incident' was far too light a term to use, but he also expected no less from a smarmy executive. "We think there's a network of human traffickers who have been using this route to smuggle people out of the country. We'd like to have access to your records for recent shipments and employees who would have direct contact with those cargo vessels."

"You think one of our employees is responsible?" Bankfoot asked.

"We think there's a possible connection, yes."

"I would have thought the shipping line would be most likely," Lyons said.

Steve knew he was trying to protect his company by fostering blame for another, but they'd already worked that angle through the night and though there were links, not everything could be traced to them. They couldn't find any higher ranking officers on board who were present each time the lower level traffickers they had arrested were there. So no one calling any shots could be matched to the shipping firm. Besides, it made more sense for someone based in Hawaii to take charge of the warehouses. "We're looking into it. Time is a factor and we have to look at all possibilities. Whoever did this had access to schedules and manifests. A lot of that could be procured through hacking, blackmail or a number of other avenues."

"We need to check everything," Kono finished for him as Steve gave the VP a hard look. He didn't like him. "If we don't, prosecutors will ask questions."

"Of course, we'll certainly do what we can though I doubt anyone working for us would be responsible. But it would be preferable if you came back with a warrant," he smiled. And that was why Steve didn't like the guy. He was calm and he was stalling. "I'm sure you understand that our records are proprietary and our employees expect us to keep their details in confidence. A warrant would allay any worries that we just hand out information to whoever asks. I'm sure you understand."

"I do. And we will," Steve told him assuredly.

*

"A minivan?" Danny asked as he looked at the car with the ORC logo that was waiting for him outside the front doors of the hospital. "What do you usually use it for? Field trips? Because I don't have my permission slip so I think I should just get a cab and make my own way."

"If you keep joking about running away we will keep a closer eye on you," Mindy told him with very little bite to her words as she helped him rise from the wheelchair and handed him the walking stick he could use as he stepped up into the car.

Doctor Gray followed him in. She could have sat anywhere but after helping him with his seatbelt, she chose to stick by his side, their arms touching. "You're not coming with us?" Danny asked as Mindy began to close the door.

"I have my own car with me, I'll meet you there and help you get settled in," she answered.

The driver cut a silent figure in the front. He was probably an orderly or a general dogs body of some kind who Gray barely acknowledged as he put the car in drive. 

This was Danny's first time somewhere tropical and he kept his eyes on the window, studiously ignoring Gray as much as possible. He'd lived in mostly colder cities so he wasn't used to the sunshine and palm trees.

Gray shifted in her seat, turning to face Danny a little more, her knee pressing to Danny's thigh. She leaned her head in closer. "You'll like the ORC here. The rooms are a good size, there's a lot of recreational activities and the food is really good."

"Thanks but I don't need the Trip Advisor review. I'm still going to hate it."

She bit the inside of her cheek, trying to hide her annoyance at how he still clung to his dislike of things. Tensing, she kept her alpha posture and her height over him. "Well, it's likely you won't be there for too long. You're an unbonded prime in your thirties, we're going to have to get you with an alpha quickly so you can start breeding."

"Why not just send me back to New Jersey so I don't have to be here… on this island," he added the last, but he really meant '…with you' as he still felt uncomfortable in Gray's presence. There was something overbearing about her that made him prickle.

"There's risk in sending you back. Besides, I've already spoken to the Governor and he believes it is in your best interests to remain here… with me," she added as if she'd known what Danny had really wanted to say and was throwing it back in his face. "It'll be a few days before your parents arrive. They've got a lot to organize and the flights are long. We might have decided on the perfect alpha by then anyway."

"After a few _**days**_?" Danny asked, turning again to face her. "So much for getting to choose my own future."

"You forfeited that by running away twenty years ago. Now we have to make decisions quickly based on alphas willing to take you on who will understand your needs. I don't expect it to be a long list but I know who'll be on it and I would think the ORC Directors will agree what's best."

"You can't force me! If you think for one second that you can get away with a drug bond-" Danny didn't get to say anything else. There was an almighty crashing sound of twisting metal and screeching tires and pain jarred in Danny's knee and shoulder. 

The car spun out of control and the force threw Gray on top of Danny and she stayed there, covering him, protecting him. As everything stopped, Danny thought it was a miracle the car was still upright. The silence of the immediate aftermath was broken at the sound of gunshots. 

Gray ducked her head down, body still covering Danny's as the windscreen shattered and then whoever did this fled the scene.

Danny just breathed, unsure what to do or how safe they were, but his eyes caught sight of the driver and the man was angry, blood dripping from an arm wound. He was quick to get out of the car and shake a fist at the retreating vehicle.

"Are you hurt?" Gray asked.

"No more than I was," Danny answered, voice strained as he shifted and his knee argued with him. 

Gray got up onto her elbows but stayed on top of him, her groin pressing to his. She frowned as she looked down at him. They were so close and the light coming in the window landed directly onto them. "What in the-?" she asked, cutting herself off and grabbing his chin, turning his head better into the light, fingers keeping his eyelids open.

*

"I don't get it," Kono said as they exited the courthouse, warrants in hand. "I'm going to back your play whatever, but this isn't your usual style."

"It's standard police protocol," Steve explained on a shrug. 

"Yeah but to quote the judge, 'since when did Five-0 get warrants before knocking doors in'? I wasn't going to say anything but others will ask the question so I figure I better get a handle on this now. I'm used to seeing you ripping heads off to get the information we need."

Steve stopped and turned to face her. "This case is too big to risk cutting corners. Powerful alphas will do what they can to evade the law and they will slide their way out of this through any loophole. If we're going to get justice for these omegas we need to do this by the book. So far all we've got is the lower level foot soldiers. I want the person giving the orders."

"I get wanting to catch all the bad guys and I've seen you when cases get to you, but this is new."

"What are you talking about?" Steve asked as he climbed into the drivers seat. 

Kono buckled her seat belt and gave him a withering glance. "The look on your face is different, that's all. I can't explain it."

Steve's phone rang just as he was about to pull into traffic so instead he answered it, putting it on speaker. "Hey Chin, what's up?"

"We just got word about an accident on the Pali Highway en route to the ORC. The car transporting Williams was run off the road and shot at."

"Is he okay?" Steve asked, heart sinking.

"Looks like, but this can't be a coincidence."

"We're on our way," Steve answered and turned on his lights and siren as he pulled into the traffic and took off at speed.


	4. Chapter 4

Doctor Shaw had been not too far behind the ORC minivan and had been one of the first people on the scene. She had called 911 and now there were two ambulances and three cop cars around them. 

Danny had been moved to sit inside one of the ambulances while Shaw and Gray stood nearby talking about what had happened. Not the accident. The _**other**_ thing that had happened.

"You saw for yourself, there's definitely blue in there," Gray told Shaw as she paced. "How could this even happen? Twenty-four hours ago he was being held against his will by human traffickers."

"And then he was rescued by a lot of alphas. He's had to come to terms with the death of his best friend. He had to fight for his own life as well as others', and he killed two people in the process. And then there's coming to terms with the fact that the way he's been living is about to completely change. That's a lot of upheaval. That kind of uncertainty? He could have latched onto any alpha who seemed like a safe place."

Danny shook his head as he listened but the two women paid him no real attention. He wasn't that dumb as to blindly send out feelers to an alpha, let alone expect anything back.

"That's all very well but twenty-four hours is very little time in which to make any kind of impression or connection with someone, even as a victim clinging to a rescuer which, from all the reports I've seen on Danny's rescue, didn't exactly happen."

"Well, on the plus side, a quick bond means the directors will be happy not to be making decisions for him. Stepping in would be a PR nightmare no matter what side of the aisle you're on with omega rights," Mindy said. "And would you please go sit down and have the paramedics check you over," she insisted and began moving Gray towards the ambulance a little further away where the driver's wound had finished been tended. 

Danny sighed as he heard more sirens approaching and the slam of car doors. Everyone seemed pretty trusting that he'd stay where he was, but with his knee strapped and with plenty of people around, he could admit any attempts would be beyond pointless.

Mindy appeared again in Danny's sight lines as she hurried past. Curious, Danny slid off the gurney and down to sit on the edge of the bumper so he could get a better view. McGarrett had arrived and was approaching Danny, walking as fast as he could without breaking into a run.

Shaw protested. "Commander, what are you doing here?"

"What do you think I'm doing? This is a crime scene. There was an attack on my witness!"

"I still can't let you talk to him. I've barely had a chance myself and there's been developments."

"Look, whoever attacked the car must have known he was inside. Which means that Danny is still in danger, especially if he's got information and someone doesn't want him talking."

"This attack could mean a number of different things."

"And in order for me to know which of those possibilities it is, I need to speak with him. Excuse me," he pushed past her in true alpha style and Danny began laughing. 

"What's so funny?" Steve asked as he approached, stopping in front of Danny with his hands on his hips, blocking the sun.

"It's not funny like a laugh riot or anything, it's just… _typical_. You gotta run roughshod over people all the time? She's just doing her job. It's stupid, but it's her job. I already told her that I'd be fine to talk to you. I just expected it to be in some pleasant office at the ORC, you know, the kind where there's plush leather seats, maybe a ficus or a fern or something. Not the back of yet another ambulance."

"Huh," Steve said, then took a breath. "Well, let's not make a habit of this kind of location. I don't want to see you hurt again. Or anyone," he added. " _ **Did**_ you get hurt again?"

"They already had me on some pretty good painkillers so even if I was I don't think I'd have felt it. But no, paramedics say I'm pretty much the same as I was," Danny answered and Steve sagged his shoulders in relief. "Just some more bruises or whatever to add to the collection I already had going. And my torn ACL and the shoulder that had been dislocated."

Steve moved to sit beside him in much the same way as he had after the fire at the warehouse and it was strangely comforting in its familiarity. "So what's the development? Shaw indicated there had been some kind of change."

"Oh, that's just dumb," he waved off, but Steve gave him a look that all but demanded he just say what it was. "My eyes are changing. Apparently."

"You've started a bond?"

"So they say. I dunno. Maybe it's something else. A natural change based on my age or from when I got hit on the head," he shrugged, he had no intention of believing it could be true even if presented with evidence.

"There's never been a documented case of an omega's eyes changing for any other reason than a bond. I'm pretty sure doctors have monitored that kind of thing for decades. Even for primes. To think it could be something else… well, I had no idea you were that much of a unique, medical marvel."

Danny sighed, shaking his head at McGarrett's lame attempt at humor. "Maybe not, but I did not plan for this. Didn't want it. Didn't even know it had happened," he said, but he _should_ have known. "You'd think if it were true, then I'd know about it."

Omegas **always** knew. Technically the alpha should, too. It took two to tango, after all. If he had bonded unconsciously, it would make itself known to him soon enough. He just always figured if he was to be so stupid as to start a bond, he'd damned well know exactly who it was with straight away. That was the point of bonds - they cemented feelings that grew over time. Love at first sight was something from movies, not real life. He prided himself on not being emotionally idiotic. He'd rather cut off his own dick than be so reckless and he didn't want to acknowledge any of it.

"So who's the lucky alpha?" Steve asked, a smile plastered on his face that didn't meet his eyes and he seemed to grind his back teeth as he asked. Danny just gave him an unsure head shake in response. "You don't know? So you _**and**_ the alpha are completely in the dark about this? That's unusual. You're sure you don't know who it is?"

"Well, there's probably a process of elimination but no, not really."

"I'm surprised the alpha hasn't come forward. Any alpha would be lucky to bond with you, are they insane?"

Danny gave a self-deprecating snort, but his words held a hint of a hope. "You're an alpha. I don't see _**you**_ jumping at the opportunity."

"I'm… different. I mean, I've never wanted that kind of thing, but every other alpha out there who doesn't have someone should be beating down doors for the chance."

"So… any single alpha,  _except you_?" Danny felt his stomach fall but at the same time, he enjoyed the look of discomfort on McGarrett's face. He felt a playfulness like he'd had before when talking to the alpha, which was the only fun he'd had since he and Billy had been taken. "I had no idea you were so unique," Danny threw Steve's words back at him and it made them both laugh. 

"Listen, you got any idea why someone would want you dead?"

"They just wanted to scare me. The car's not really in that bad a condition for being run off the road. It's not like they did it at a section of the highway with a massive drop. And the gunshots were aimed high through the wind shield and happened after we'd come to a stop. They'd have been able to see that I was hunkered down by then. So unless the driver's arm was the intended target, I figure it was a warning with an accidental injury."

Steve gave Danny an impressed look. 

Danny just stared right back, enjoying a stupefied alpha even if he knew the guy would get his bearings again quickly. "My uncle's a cop. It's in my blood. Also, I have an actual brain," he pointed at his head. "Omegas aren't on this planet just to give alphas something to fuck."

McGarrett was stumped again for a moment, catching up on his thoughts. "You really think alphas are just walking dicks who lord it over everyone and everything?"

"I've never been given a reason to see anything else in them."

"That's actually sad, more than anything," Steve said. "I wish I had a chance to show you that some of us are a lot more respectful but right now I need to make sure you're safe along with the other omegas and I've got to find who's responsible for all of this. Maybe you saw something, heard something. Places, names, anything to identify them?"

Danny shook his head even as he cast his mind back. "No more than the other three. We were always kept together so there couldn't be anything that set me apart other than the fact I killed that guy who was in charge. What?" Danny asked as Steve gave him a confused look.

"What other three?"

"The other three omegas who were with me. Katie, Josh and Carla."

"Danny, including you we found _eight_ omegas."

" _ **Eight**_?!" Danny asked, incredulous. "Our container had five. After they killed Billy there was just the four of us. We never saw anyone else…. but…" his mind was beginning to put the pieces together. "When they first caught us it was just the two of us until we were in the pod on the ship and met the other three. They had us in an old factory, we just figured we were the last to be loaded in because it was opportunistic that they caught us, not that there was any separation."

Steve was beginning to think along the same lines. "They use more than one warehouse, maybe alternate them as well. This is the break we needed," Steve got to his feet and turned back to Danny, cupping his cheeks and laying a smacking kiss on his forehead. He squinted and looked deeper into Danny's eyes while he was this close. "Oh yeah.. the blue is really sparkling beside the gold."

Finally noticing the position he was in, he abruptly let go and straightened, the tinge of a blush on his face.

"Glad I could be of help," Danny told him and McGarrett simply nodded before rushing back to his truck and yelling for the female alpha who had arrived with him to hurry up. Danny didn't know why, but McGarrett spotting the change in him began to make it more real in his own mind.

Shit. He really had been dumb enough to start a bond.

*

Danny had been shown his room and was just looking around it when there was the call of his name from down the hallway and Katie came barreling towards him. She would have thrown her arms around him, but seeing his cane decided to slow and carefully wrap around him in a light hold before letting go.

"They said there was some kind of accident!"

"Car trouble," Danny shook off, not wanting to scare her. "I'm fine. As fine as I was before getting into the car. And I'm going to heal and be good as new soon enough."

"I'm just glad you're here. The place doesn't seem so bad. They've got a lot of stuff to do and the doctor I saw seemed okay. A couple of the orderlies are a bit... weird."

"Weird how?"

"They're alphas and they _look_. Like, a lot. I got told by another omega who's been here a month or so that one of them is a widow and he kind of leers. The other apparently has a beta girlfriend and they think he cheats on her with other betas. I heard he likes to touch but does it in ways where you can't really tell he's doing it, like brushing by you and stuff. I told everyone how tough you are. Said if they tried it with you they'd get punched in the face," she made a punching motion and it made him laugh.

"How's everything else?" he asked as he sat on the bed.

"I cry a lot," she told him without hesitation. "Sometimes I wonder if I'll ever stop. My eyes feel permanently puffy."

"I'm sure it's normal."

"Have you cried?" she asked, eyes wide, looking for that reassurance that she wasn't alone.

"Not yet," he admitted.

"Well, you're stronger than the rest of us," she said. "I should let you get settled. A bunch of us are going swimming later. You should join us."

"Maybe," he said as he let her leave. He had no intention of swimming - he hated it. He'd probably hide out in his room and try and come to terms with being here, with how to avoid Doctor Gray as much as possible, and contemplate what was going on with this bond and how he felt about it.

*

"Keeping the omegas separated is a pretty smart move. Smaller numbers means they can be intimidated more. Cultivate a feeling of loneliness. Plus, if one or two manage to escape, they don't lose all of them," Chin postulated as the team congregated at the tech table again.

"We know the names of the three omegas who were with Danny so the other four had to be held somewhere else. Maybe in more than one place. They would have to be close, too."

"I'm still trying to work on who exactly owns the warehouse that burned down," Chin continued. "Jerry already discovered links through a few different shell corporations. I've asked him to see if those names pop for any other warehouses in the vicinity. But we've not found anything yet that ties anyone to DS Oil."

"What about the personnel records from our warrant?" Steve asked.

"We're still looking. But if we want whoever it is that's funding the operation then it would have to be someone with access to a lot of money. Most employees just aren't that flush. And the rich ones don't have direct links to the shipping company or the port - that kind of communication is done by the various departments. Finding someone linked to everything is unlikely."

"Okay, so we may be looking at a chain that we need to work our way up," Steve scrubbed his face. "We confirmed Danny was in Portland. Send their PD the information on the other three omegas who were with him and maybe we'll get something else to go on. What would help is knowing where the other four omegas came from since it's likely Hawaii is being used as a halfway meeting point. Lou, why don't you follow up on that?"

"Personally, I think I should concentrate on the Portland side of things. You should be the one to deal with the omegas," Lou suggested

"You know I'm no good with them," Steve argued.

Kono snorted. "Maybe you used to be, but with this case, I think Lou's right."

Steve looked around at them, all trying to disguise smirks and  knowing looks. "If you've got something to say just say it."

"It just seems like you and Williams have some kind of... 'connection'," Kono said.

" _One_ omega. And he's different. But fine, I'll call Doctor Show," he pointed to each of them as he backed up. "This better not be some kind of attempt to get me to pick an omega. I'm fine with Catherine leaving. I don't need anything romantic in my life right now."

*

Danny was sick of being prodded and poked. It hadn't even been a full day yet. Doctor Gray was once more measuring things and taking readings. Even the slightest fluctuation in his temperature seemed to be highly important to her and he thought the whole thing was ridiculous.

"Danny, you're a prime of… a certain age. You've initiated a bond that you seem to be fighting since it wasn't a conscious decision. Everything about your situation is unique. Documenting everything is vital."

The sterile room around him with its blue walls and copious instruments was in no way relaxing, but the chair he was in was a perfect angle for his damaged knee to be comfortable on. It was the only saving grace that room had. "I still think taking some of these tests every few hours is overkill."

"Well, your situation keeps changing," she reminded him then perched on a stool beside him. "Now, there is one more thing I'd like to document. How are you feeling sexually?"

"What the hell does that mean?"

"The bond will culminate in a sexual encounter with an alpha. It's still in its early stage but your body should be reacting by now. Your temperature will rise, you'll feel light headed occasionally, you'll become irritable and you'll be sexually aroused more easily. So my question is, are you noticing those changes? Do you feel aroused?"

"I was almost killed last night and someone ran our car off the road and shot at us just a couple of hours ago. I'm in pain in a lot of places so no, sex isn't at the top of the agenda!"

"How often would you say you masturbated?"

"I'm not answering that," he crossed his arms. 

"I'm already checking your temperature regularly. We'll continue to check your blood pressure and fluid intake to monitor any dizziness you feel. And ideally you'd allow me to examine your genitals and monitor your natural wetness but such inspections can only be carried out with the omega's direct permission. Perhaps instead we could leave you alone and you could take the samples for us?"

"You want me to masturbate for you? Are you kidding me? I'm not into being watched, thank you very much."

"There's more privacy in your own room."

Danny snorted. "Yeah, right, like I don't know you've got cameras in there. Even if I _could_ be guaranteed privacy I still wouldn't do it." He refused to look her in the eye. Thank God for the one decent thing to come out of the ORC scandals of the 80s when those poor kids in New York got taken advantage of by sick doctors. In Danny's opinion the laws hadn't gone far enough in granting omegas more freedoms since then but at the very least, they got to control how they were touched if it pertained directly to something sexual. Gray would have to come up with a damned good medical reason to get near Danny's genitals again if she was to remain on the right side of the law.

"Other omegas have agreed to this before," she tried to coax him. "We can provide you with something to watch and we have vibrators you can use…"

"The answer is still no."

She put her hand on his thigh and rubbed lightly. "Danny, you might find it actually helps. And it's nothing to be embarrassed about."

"I'd rather… save it for my alpha, for the bond" he blurted out. He didn't mean it, he just wanted to shut her up.

"I see," she said, her hand still on his leg but it was now still. "You want and expect your alpha to control your sex life. I respect that," she said.

"I-" he was going to correct her, say that the last thing he wanted was an alpha who controlled anything in his life, but she was backing off and that was a win.

"Well, at least we've begun to narrow down the timing of your bond and we were right that it was likely trauma induced. Going by the deterioration of the coloring in your eyes and the speed of it, I'd say you met the alpha late last night. I know that Doctor Shaw wants to spend some time with you to talk about it."

"Well, she'll just have to wait. I promised the others I'd go to the pool with them. So unless I'm a prisoner being kept to some kind of enforced schedule…"

"You're free to go," she plastered on a fake smile and watched his every move as he left her office as quickly as he could.

*

"Portland PD have made in roads, they've arrested two men in connection with this, both of whom work for the shipping company, not DS Oil," Lou told Steve as he popped his head into the office.

Steve had spoken to Doctor Shaw at the ORC and she'd informed him that the other omegas had been in Southern California. They knew they'd traveled for a while to get to the port, so there wasn't an accurate location but Steve had checked into it and DS Oil operated with the same shipping company out of the LA port, not San Diego so he was concentrating the investigation there. But if there were still no leads to the Oil company but plenty to the cargo ships, maybe they had been looking at this from the wrong angle, but-

"The executive at the Oil firm, Lyons… his first instinct was to pin everything on the shipping firm."

Lou took a seat. "Could be company loyalty - he couldn't possibly believe it was related to the firm that pays him that big ass salary."

"Or he's in on it and he's trying to misdirect us. Isn't it handy how so far the lines of inquiry would lead to the cargo carrier?"

"You think it's too convenient?"

"Something doesn't sit right. My gut tells me an Oil company or at least, people who work for one, are the more likely of the two to be greedy."

"And evil," Lou said, putting it in his distinct style that bordered between sarcasm and contempt when dealing with the criminal mind. "But we've got nothing on them. How about your omega?"

"What are you talking about?" Steve asked confused. 

"Williams, obviously. It's been his information that keeps propelling the case forward. Maybe there's something else."

"When he gave me the information about the separation of the omegas I didn't stop to ask anything else when I should have," Steve continued, ignoring Lou's original comment implying Danny belonged to Steve. For some reason his squad seemed to be trying to set them up and it was becoming more blatant. An alpha was the last thing Danny wanted and Steve respected that. Of course it was a shame that the ORC and other alphas didn't but there was nothing he could do about that. "Finding out who attacked him is another route we might be able to follow - there has to be a money trail for that if it was a hired hit."

"Are you going to see if you can talk to him again?"

"No," Steve said frankly though he was tempted. "It's not necessary. And besides, when I asked Doctor Shaw about information I needed on the other omegas she also told me that Danny was off limits for the rest of the day."

Lou leaned forwards. "Steve, it's clear you like the guy, we all noticed it. For someone who never wanted to worry about omegas, he's made a hell of an impression on you."

"What's your point, Lou?"

"Have you considered putting your name forward for him?"

"Even if that was something I'd thought of, which it isn't," he hastened to add. "It's not possible. Danny's already begun bonding with someone."

"Oh," Lou leaned back again. "So that's why you've been such a sour puss this afternoon."

"I am not a sour puss," Steve wrinkled his nose at the term. "Just get out and go do your job."

Lou sighed and muttered to himself about denial all the way out of Steve's office.

*

The ORC wasn't going to go all out in getting the omegas the best of clothing, but they had basics in all different sizes and in the wardrobe in Danny's room he was able to grab a pair of swimming trunks and a t-shirt that fit him.

He didn't have actual plans to go swimming but he needed to look the part if he could put off having to deal with any of the ORC staff and instead get a moment to himself outside of the four small walls of his living quarters. He felt like ever since he'd been admitted at the hospital the night before, that he'd either been getting medical checks or was having his head shrunk by Doctor Shaw. And any time he could avoid Gray was a plus. 

"Why don't you come in, Danny?" Katie asked from where she and another girl Danny didn't know were playing around together. 

He clocked where an orderly was watching all of them with a leery look on his face while covering his groin with clasped hands. Danny decided it was best to keep his t-shirt on as he sat in a fold out chair nearer the shallow end. He waved her off. "I'm fine over here for a while."

He was content to watch. There were about six of them in all. Besides Katie and her new friend, another two were enjoying the hot tub and one more had gone into the sauna. If Danny didn't know better, he'd think they were at a hotel and enjoying some kind of vacation. This was the kind of image the ORC wanted to project to the public - services that suited the omegas, made them happy, provided for them in all ways.

But behind the facade were invasive and manipulative tests, a parade in front of alphas that held no difference in Danny's mind to the auction block the traffickers had intended for them, and there were restrictions on movement that meant the omegas couldn't leave the confines of the ORC without escorts. Not to mention, orderlies and doctors who walked a very thin line nowadays between what was appropriate and what was not. And if they did stray? Oh, that was just natural behavior for alphas and you can't blame them for it. 'Alphas will be alphas'.

"You know, if you want you can go in the water and we can re-wrap your knee when you come out. The buoyancy would probably help it," Mindy said as she came and sat beside him. So much for avoiding any more head shrinking.

"I only came here to make sure they were okay," he pointed into the pool at Katie and her friend.

"And to avoid me and the other staff," Mindy said with a hint of a smile. "I get it. You're feeling stifled. It makes sense after the changes you've had recently."

"Don't do that, don't make stupid excuses for behavior, especially since there's no deep meaning behind this," he said. "If I'm avoiding things it's because I'm not in the mood and don't like a lot of the people around here. It's got nothing to do with my mental state."

"Well, you went to great effort to come here. You even got changed into swimwear. So why not go in?"

"I hate swimming. Everything about it, I don't like."

"Is it because you can't swim?"

"I swim very well. I just don't like to. It's stupid and you get water up your nose and in your ears and it's dangerous. You could drown."

"So… something happened," she guessed as his face told of how much he disliked water and his words evoked something that was probably obvious to a psychologist but Danny hadn't been thinking when he'd spoken.

"So what if it did?" he asked, not bothering to deny the fact. But just because he had a reason to hate swimming didn't mean it was any of her business.

"It could be important. I'm just throwing this out there, but I'm thinking it happened when you were young. Childhood trauma is a classic, after all," she said, trying to be jovial with him, hoping it would make him open up to her but when it didn't work she continued normally. "I'll bet you didn't go near a pool or the ocean while on the run because you'd worry that might give you away. You'd never want to be near naked in front of alphas even with your lenses in just in case. Am I getting anywhere close to the truth here?"

As he weighed up how to answer her, the silence spoke volumes.

"Look, being here is the last thing you wanted. You've actively avoided it for twenty years. Talking to me as a psychologist probably scares you for a bunch of reasons… I'm the enemy. I work here, I'm a beta who reports to alphas, I'm a stranger. But Danny, I respect you and I hope you've seen that since we met, I've treated you like you're your own person. And I'll always do that. And where possible I'm going to make sure you get the best out of this experience at the Center. You don't have to talk to me, but honestly, it really is cathartic. And talking to a virtual stranger can sometimes be a lot more comfortable than talking to family."

Danny sighed. If he gave her this, she might shut up and not talk to him about the things he expected her to want to talk about - the impending progression of his bond to… well, to someone. A blurred picture in his head was consolidating based on what he knew and felt and he didn't know what to make of it. Talking to her about something as stupid as swimming could be a good distraction for both of them. 

"Todd Goldman."

"An alpha, I'm guessing?" she said as she prompted him further. 

"School bully. He always figured it was his birthright to have any omega he wanted and he started that shit young. As we got older it became more focused on me, especially since everyone figured I was going to test as prime. It's one of the reasons I started dating Rachel, my high school girlfriend. I just wanted him to back off."

"So where does the swimming come into it?"

"Summer camp at Wildwood. The last trip we took when we were fifteen, Billy and I were at the beach about to have a race in the water. I cheated and started without him, just for a laugh, but about fifty yards out I felt something behind me and it's Todd, not Billy. He starts doing a bunch of alpha crap; pulling down my shorts, ducking under the water to touch me, grabbing me and laughing the whole time and telling me I was going to be his omega so why fight it. 

"I somehow got free and I just swam as fast as I could to get away. I kept going further and further, really far out, and then I got caught in a riptide. Todd pulled me out of it, dragged me back to shore, holding onto me the whole way and I was too tired to put up a fight. 

"We get back to dry land and he starts bragging to everyone about it. He made himself out to be the hero, and worst of all, they made me present him with some stupid plaque for bravery and thank him. And he just stands there looking like a smug bastard, like he got everything his way. When we got back to school in the Fall, he still had all that crap in his locker. Said that since I was starting at the ORC in Hoboken soon that he was going to have his dad take him up and put his name down for me. He wanted to be first in line."

Shaw looked like she was putting more puzzle pieces together, that the way he acted was more than just his hatred of water after such a bad experience. "When you ran… he was your reason?"

"One of them," Danny nodded. "It was Billy's idea to run but I happily went. The last thing I ever wanted was to be landed with Todd Goldman."

"The ORC wouldn't have made you do that. If you didn't want it they wouldn't be able to force you. Inducing bonds like that is illegal in most States. And even where it is legal, it's gotta go through courts to be allowed as a special circumstance."

"Yeah, but Goldman came from money. Used to brag about it. He was a spoiled brat and he could have done, I dunno, _**something**_ … either force it himself or bribe someone in the Center to do it for him. One shot of that drug in me and I'd have had no choice."

"It's illegal, Danny. We don't do that kind of thing here," she tried to reassure him. "This bond that started? I promise you that it's natural."

"I know that. It's my own stupid fault. Right now my only hope is that the alpha is willing to break it."

"I dunno," Shaw leaned back in her seat. "It happens, sure. Amicable splits are great but it's really uncommon. The alpha is going to be getting more and more possessive right now, getting irritable, quick to anger. They'll be focused on you, wanting to spend time with you, thinking about you. It's a hard thing for an alpha to fight at the beginning, maybe in a couple of years..."

"Urgh, I hate alphas," Danny moaned as he mirrored Shaw's position. He ran a hand over his face.

"You can't hate _all_ alphas," she said. "I mean, your dad's an alpha, you don't hate him, right?"

"Of course not, my father's amazing. I know there's good ones out there, but they're rarer than the Jets winning a championship."

She smiled at his joke. "So is it possible that the alpha you gravitated to was because you instantly somehow figured he or she could be like your dad?"

He gave her a look that asked if she was insane. "That's ridiculous. And the thought makes me want to throw up."

"No, not literally like your father, just… basically your ideal alpha. Someone you could feel comfortable with, someone who would respect you, with an outlook on life that was compatible enough with yours."

"How could I know that when I first met him? Or her," he hastily added, though it drew more attention to his wording and the likelihood of just who the alpha was.

"Instinct is a strong omega trait. And there's a lot you can tell straight away, for good and for bad. You took an instant dislike to the alphas who kidnapped you, didn't you?"

"Yeah, but that's different. I mean Billy-"

"Billy what?" she asked when he cut himself of from talking more. 

"Billy, he and I, we knew each other inside and out… and when those guys appeared at our door, of course we both knew something wasn't right," he said, trying to say what he was going to but he could feel himself getting choked up. The biggest part of that was the grief he felt at the loss of his friend but another part felt guilty for not thinking about Billy more since his death. 

It seemed wrong, unnatural. It was unbelievable to Danny that he could have lost his friend in such a way that he wanted to block it from his mind and yet he was well aware that Billy wouldn't just come walking around the corner. Danny was on his own now. He wasn't used to it, he didn't like it. And that was before you added in the uncertainty of the life he was now facing.

As much as he hated alphas and didn't want to submit to expectations, he still wanted a family. He and Billy had been that for each other, platonically. 

Danny wanted a partner, wanted some romance in his life, wanted to share things intimately. But he didn't want to be a slave, or controlled, or looked down on as second class simply because of his biology. Danny wanted kids, he wanted to take care of them, raise them right, have the family line continue. But on the other hand, he never wanted a child of his to face the kind of life choices he had. 

He felt like a walking contradiction and was a confused mess - especially now in his present bonding situation. He didn't know what he wanted anymore. 

Billy would have helped him through this and now he had no one.

He wiped the tears from his eyes but they began to fall too fast to hide or stop. He leaned forward, elbows on his knees, head in his hands as he let go the grief he'd bottled up for what felt like an eternity and mourned his friend. 

Shaw was careful, but brought her chair closer and rubbed a hand over his back and murmured supporting words. But it was when Katie came and knelt in front of him and saw him as just as vulnerable an omega as her, that he tried to stop crying, wiping harshly at his cheek and steadying his breathing. 

When she touched his knee and told him how proud of him she was, the tears just started afresh.


	5. Chapter 5

"So, it's been easier to trace the car used to run the ORC minivan off the road than it has been to follow up on the possible warehouses; Jerry is still working on those. In the meantime, we caught what we think is the culprit on traffic cams further up the Highway shortly after the attack," Chin brought up a still image of an old Honda Civic. "Beyond the timing, the color seems to match based on scrapings left on the ORC vehicle and the tire tread is consistent. The car was reported stolen a short while before - probably an opportunistic thief based on what they planned to do with it. Luckily, we were able to track it further into Honolulu and got a clean shot of the driver."

"What did facial rec give us?" Steve asked, leaning on the tech table, looking at the picture of the woman on the screen. It was just the two of them in the bull pen while Lou was on the phone in his office and Kono was out.

"This is an interesting one. Found her in the government database."

"What agency?" Steve asked, confused and intrigued.

"CIA. An analyst who was working in Washington DC until a few years ago. She dropped off the radar after the death of her fiancé. I reached out to some of her former colleagues who said she was hit hard by his death. She's a beta, he was an omega," Chin's eyebrow rose as he delivered the information, gauging to see if Steve was coming to the same conclusions that he already had.

"Do we know how he died?"

Chin shook his head. "Not exactly. All I got from the people I talked to was some kind of car accident."

"Okay, do we have an address for her?"

"Nothing local, but I checked her credit card activity and got something for a hostel on Seaside. Called them and she's been staying there a while, no check out date was originally given but she told them earlier she'd be leaving by morning."

"Okay," Steve checked his watch to see how late it was. "Let's go get her before she disappears."

Arriving at the hostel, they found out what room she was staying in and were able to verify that she was on the property currently. Trying not to make a scene, they kept their guns holstered and knocked on the door, but with impatience, Steve kicked it in milliseconds after announcing them as Five-0. It gave the woman inside a fright and she leapt back from the suitcase she was packing and immediately held her hands up.

"Jenna Kaye, you're under arrest," Steve growled as he grabbed forcefully for her hands to get the cuffs on them. He wasn't willing to listen to excuses. This woman had run Danny off the road and had shot at the vehicle. That was beyond unacceptable.

*

Given the mood he was in, Steve would have given a tour de force as bad cop to Chin's good cop but it was unnecessary. Kaye opened her mouth the moment Steve joined them in the rendition room and everything tumbled right out. She admitted to it straight away but quickly it became apparent that Danny wasn't the intended target as she didn't even know an omega was in the car - she thought it was just the alpha doctor and the driver. it had been a coincidence, at least, from her perspective. Five-0 could let it go at that and consider the same, but it was too convenient.

"So you're a member of the Omega Liberation group?" Steve asked, arms still crossed and lips thin.

"Proudly. I came over here from the mainland so we could investigate the Research Center on the island. We keep tabs on them nationwide because the government is either complicit or turns a blind eye to what goes on," she said. "You only care about omegas when it comes to controlling them."

"They're a small section of the population, the government is just trying to protect them before they're all gone," Chin told her and she snorted in disgust.

"All alphas want is to have them for themselves. Far be it for an omega to make a decision for themselves, be with who they want. They shouldn't have to run away because they don't want to be forced to start breeding. To have no choice but to bond from some shortlist of alpha applicants. It's a gross violation of human rights. So much for 'land of the free'."

"Omegas can marry whomever they chose, including betas. That's the law."

"Sure there are 'laws' that allow it, but try telling that to the alphas out there who twist things, who pressure omegas, who bully. And some States have gone against the rulings and even allow forced bonds! Just because lawmakers in Washington think they're making strides going forward, doesn't mean everyone agrees and in this case, those people are dangerous."

Steve took a deep breath. "You seem very passionate about this."

"I learned first hand just how much alphas get away with. My fiancé was killed in a hit and run. I told the police who did it but they were never prosecuted. All because he's the son of a prominent lawyer in DC."

"How do you know he did it?"

"Because he'd been threatening Josh for ages. They met at a government function. Josh was already engaged to me, he never wanted an alpha. It started small with flowers being sent or notes then he started showing up everywhere we went. He tried to get me fired from the CIA over something stupid, started trying to sabotage my career and my relationship. When he finally got the hint that Josh and I were going to get married no matter what and that our bond was strong, he figured if he couldn't have Josh then no one could. He either did it himself or he put out a hit but I know it was him. I refuse to let other omegas go through what Josh did."

"By becoming involved in an illegal and morally questionable organization?"

"We're doing what's right. Standing up for exploited omegas. The best way for us to do that is to scare the alphas. If that means running them off the road to rattle them, then so be it."

"You could have killed a _**prime**_ omega who was in that van! He's already been harmed by the types of alphas you  **should** be more concerned about. You didn't care who was in the car, you wanted to hurt people on purpose to make a statement?! You're no better than the scum we're fighting!" Steve ranted at her, voice rising in anger. Chin had to pull him back before he physically assaulted her, a hand pushing against Steve's chest to keep him from closing in on her again.

"I didn't mean to hurt him," she said seeming genuinely dismayed at what could have happened. "We were told it was just the doctor inside."

"That doctor is helping him, you pile of -" Steve said and was about to go at her again when he saw her eyes roll in clear disagreement.

"We just wanted to send the doctor and the Center a message-"

"And what the hell good would that have even done?!" Steve yelled. "They didn't even know it had anything to do with the OLP! You could have hurt him, you _bi_ -"

"STEVE! That's enough," Chin continued to keep him back. "Williams is fine. You need to calm down."

"I am calm," Steve growled as he pulled back and turned to the wall. He stretched out his fingers from the fists he'd made and rolled his neck. He kept the rigor in his posture, using his alpha nature to tower over everyone with confidence. He was in control, and he should not be crossed.

"Wait," Chin turned back to Kaye. "You were told about the van? By who?"

"We have a message board online. I was sent a DM with the information through another member."

"You know this person?"

"No, I didn't recognize the handle. But they knew I was in Hawaii and mailed me directly. I figured they had to be pretty involved to know that."

"Not necessarily if they knew how to find anyone nearby, maybe checking IP addresses. So did someone made a mistake or were you deliberately fed the wrong information," Chin said, then looked at Steve. "The van was coming from the hospital. Everyone involved in the case through Five-0, HPD, the hospital and the ORC were all well aware they were transporting omegas throughout the day."

"We need to know what message board it is, and your log in details," Steve told her.

She faced up to him. "If I give you that information then you can shut down the whole group. You'd know about a lot of omegas in hiding. I can't do that."

"I'm only interested in finding out the information relating to today. Anything else I don't care about. If you give me what I need, if you trust me to follow through only on what's applicable to this, I'll speak to the DA about being lenient on you." He didn't want to. He wanted to lock her up and throw away the key for what she'd done, but he needed to consider the big picture and any further danger to his- to Danny. "At the very least it gives the group time to set up a new board and migrate the information over."

"Fine. But I want to help. I want to monitor when you log in as me and I want your word, in writing, that you won't go after any members or protected omegas on there."

"Okay. Thank you."

Before the two alphas could leave the room again, she called out to them. "Hey, don't pressure the omega," she said.

"What are you talking about?" Steve asked as she was definitely addressing him.

"If he's not into it, you know? Just... respect his decisions."

He didn't bother replying to her, just closed the door and turned to Chin once they were in the hallway outside. "Get Jerry on this. Have him trace the location of the person who tipped off the OLP."

*

Steve pulled his truck into the car park at the Omega Center just at the right time to answer his ringing phone and it was Jerry on the other end.

"Hey, so, the user who made contact with former Agent Kaye was new to the chat group and in the messages they sent, they made it clear that the doctor was visiting the hospital and they say there was no likelihood of any omegas being in the vehicle. The last part of the conversation has an update about an approximate time the minivan was leaving to drive back to the Center."

"So outside of law enforcement and the ORC, we'd be thinking about checking the hospital staff?"

"Maybe, but to be honest, the hospital isn't all that secure in IT terms. It would take a really good hacker but it's highly possible they could have got in and looked at updated records. Not good news for the hospital, I'll speak to them about it, but I need to talk to someone who knows more about this stuff to see how it was done."

"Okay, I know just the guy. I'll pick him up after I'm done here."

"Well if you need to spend longer there then I can-"

"Thanks, but I won't be long. It's just an update and to check their security. Just in case."

"Whatever you say," Jerry answered before the conversation finished.

As veiled as it was, Steve wasn't blind to Jerry's true meaning. He'd need to do something about that and stamp his authority back on the team reminding them to mind their own business and to stop jumping to wrong conclusions. They knew better. And beyond that, it was all just getting very irritating. He had a job to do. Once it was finished he'd move on to the next. That was it.

He climbed out of the car, making sure his handgun was secure on his waist by his badge and then headed inside. He gave a fleeting glance to the alpha security guard behind a desk in the corner. He expected the man had CCTV feeds but likely dealt most frequently with protesters at the front gates than anything happening within the Center. He asked the beta receptionists for directions to Shaw's office and with a flash of his badge he was granted the access and shown in the right direction. As he approached, a doctor came out of the room. He recognized her as the blonde that had been attending to Danny and she began walking towards him, cutting him off from moving beyond her without acknowledging her presence.

Steve narrowed his eyes as he appraised her. "Doctor Gray?" he greeted her curtly and neither made any move to shake hands.

"Commander McGarrett. We've never properly spoken but I'm aware of just how involved you've been here recently. And now you're back."

"I wanted to update Doctor Shaw on the investigation into who ran you off the road this morning," he told her.

"So you're not here to try yet again to speak to our omegas? It's worrying me the amount of contact you've been attempting. These omegas have been through enough, don't you think?"

"They're witnesses who can put criminals behind bars; who can stop similar things happening to other omegas. I would have thought you would support something like that."

"Of course. The last thing I want is omegas in harm's way. But there's only so much they can do to help. And poor Danny has been through more than most. My preference would be to keep him in isolation from all alphas except those critical to his care and-"

"So all except for yourself," Steve interrupted her. "The last thing Danny wants or needs is to have his life controlled. He knows what he's ready for and capable of. Any oppression, considering his life before now, would be a backwards step. But I'm no doctor."

"No, you're not," she said back, annoyed at his assessment of events. She changed tack. "You are aware he's in the midst of a bond."

"Early stages, yes, I spoke to him about it already. I'm not sure what that has to do with my investigation."

She took a small step closer, looking him up and down and then plastered on a fake smile of condescending amusement. "You don't think it's _**you**_ , do you? Is that why you keep coming here yourself and not sending another member of your team? I hate to break it to you, but whatever infatuation you have with him, it's not a bond and it would be wise for you to curb such thoughts."

"Whatever I do or do not believe is none of your business," Steve answered, not refuting the possibility. To do so would be to give her some sense of satisfaction, give her an advantage over him. It had nothing to do with the way his stomach roiled at the idea of denying Danny anything. "If Danny has now discovered his alpha, then good for him. I hope he gets the life he wants."

She tilted her head in contemplation but she was brazen in her attitude. "He'll have the life _his alpha_ wants. There's no need for us to be so politically correct here. We're both smart enough to admit that laws and guidelines are one thing, but alphas will always be the final arbiters."

"We're also smart enough to admit that there are exceptions in life. People who challenge your outlook, change your opinions, stand up to you when it's necessary."

"Again, you act as if you have a right to care what happens. Danny knew exactly what he was getting into, even if the bond was unconsciously formed," she squared her shoulders and lowered her voice. "And if you think that you can change anything about what is happening, then you're mistaken. Stay away from him. He is not yours in any way, shape or form. _You_ are _**not**_ bonding with him," she growled the last before haughtily walking off.

Steve turned to watch her go then continued towards the open door to Shaw's office. As he approached, he noticed she was standing just inside. There was no point in denying that she had listened in, but as a beta, she'd wisely stayed out of an alpha squabble. The only awkwardness would be her reaction to it as a psychologist and he hoped she'd ignore any conversation with him that wasn't to do with the facts of the case.

"Commander, you have an update?" she asked as she gestured for him to sit, but with his hackles still raised after his encounter with Gray, he chose to remain standing and she followed suit.

"We're investigating a link between the incident on the Pali Highway, and the smuggling ring. There's nothing concrete, but we believe the traffickers manipulated a member of the OLP into carrying out the act. The group were made to believe no omegas were in the car."

"I see," she nodded along. "We don't have much trouble with the OLP out here. Our Center is ranked highly, Hawaii is a more liberal state with omega related laws. It seems strange we'd face such an attack. Are the perpetrators under arrest?"

"Yes," Steve said succinctly. "If we're right, then Danny and the others could still be in danger. I'm sure your guards are competent but I doubt they've faced something like this before." He considered his next words carefully but they were bursting to come out of his mouth, his desire to protect forefront in his mind. "I would like to take Danny into protective custody."

"You can protect him here," she said confidently but with nerves showing in her eyes as they glanced briefly to the holster at his waist. "We can augment what we have. There's a large enough perimeter and we have CCTV everywhere. Surely he's secure where he is."

"I'd feel more comfortable using a safe house."

"This isn't about your comfort, Commander. Danny requires treatment and monitoring. There's no way I can convince the doctors to be out of contact with him for any prolonged period of time and that's not just Gray," she hastened to add. "He's an older omega prime only now entering a bond. We've had interest from a lot of doctors and researchers around the globe. We have a duty of care for Danny and to the future of the omega community to learn everything we can from his… situation."

"Fine," he relented, mind already spinning in ways to work around the ORC's already established security routines. "I want Five-0 and HPD presence."

"I don't have a problem with that. Just try not to interfere in the day to day operation of the building. I don't want our staff or the omegas antagonized by this any more than is necessary."

He agreed and shook her hand before turning to leave. He stopped at the door, looking down the corridor in both directions. He didn't even deny to himself that he'd hoped to catch a glimpse of Danny around the place... to assure himself that the omega was okay, healthy, unharmed. It wasn't about bonding or not; he didn't want a bond. Of course, there was something deeply appealing about Danny that Steve had never considered before and he could easily see himself spending his life with such an omega, but that was beside the point.

Shaw interrupted his thoughts. "Commander, I don't think I'm going against any doctor patient issues by telling you that Danny still hasn't indicated who his alpha is," she told him, refuting Gray's words from earlier. "I have a feeling he knows more than he's letting on but he's not said anything to us yet. Personally, I think it stems from his own ingrained ideologies combined with a fear of rejection," she looked at him in expectation.

"Fear of rejection?" he asked, surprised that any alpha would reject Danny. He'd told the man the same thing earlier that afternoon.

"That the alpha doesn't want him. After all, it is an unusually quick and unexpected bond. He's convinced the best thing is to dissolve it but I have mental health concerns on that front - to jar the brain in such a way when it's been flooded with bonding hormones... anyway," she got herself back on track. "I just thought you should be aware."

"Why?"

"Because there is a very short list of possible alphas that he could have bonded with. We've narrowed down the timing of the onset and on top of that from monitoring how the deterioration of the gold in his eyes has continued, we know it's an alpha who has seen him more than just once or the bond wouldn't be taking as well as it has," she rounded her desk again and picked up a piece of paper, walking over to him and handing it over.

He didn't know what to make of it. The title of the document was clear: Danny Williams - possible alphas. There was a short list on the paper and the majority of those names had since been scored off. "There's only two names left on this list."

"Yes. You and Doctor Gray. If she's come to the same conclusions that I have, it might account for her behavior in the hallway."

"So if she's experiencing the symptoms of a bonded alpha, why not just score my name off and be done with it?"

"Commander, you're exhibiting the signs, too."

"I-" he pointed at himself, eyes widening and he was quick to deny but the words caught in his throat, feeling like a betrayal. "No, I- I don't understand. How could two alphas-"

"One is the genuine bond, the other? Maybe a sympathetic one. Or just a general attitude and attraction that simply looks like early bond symptoms. Personally, I'm rooting for you. And I think Danny would prefer it from the two choices but we'll just have to wait a little longer to find out for sure. I spoke with Director Mahoe earlier and she expressed a relief that the alpha would be one of you. She has a great respect for Five-0."

"Thank you, " Steve replied, a little confused about how he felt about anything right now. He knew there was relief in the knowledge that Danny's bond wasn't settled on Gray. He had an instant dislike for her that didn't stem purely from alpha rivalry. He didn't entirely know how he felt that if it wasn't her it would be him. He vehemently didn't want _**her**_ to pair with Danny, but he hadn't expected a bond for himself. The last thing he needed was distraction from the case, but it was just one case in the grand scheme of things, and any commitment to Danny would be for life. He shook his head of those thoughts; ignored how his heart seemed to soar at the flashes of imagery of a life and family with Danny. "I'll have HPD send a squad car over to keep an eye on the place and we'll set up something to have patrols this evening and overnight."

"I'm sure I'll be seeing you again," she told him as she let him leave.

*

"I have to tell myself it's just a few more days and then I'll be able to hold my boy again," Clara Williams said down the phone line. "We'd be there sooner but with your father needing to organize cover and the times of the flights-"

"Ma, I know all this, we talked about it this morning," Danny reminded her. It was like she was speaking just to fill silences. Everything was still a little awkward after so long, and over the phone made it all the more difficult. "I don't expect you to rush out here. I can take care of myself."

"I know you're an adult now, but you're unattached and in a strange place. You need your family there."

"I missed you guys a lot, but honestly, Ma, I'm doing fine."

"You've been injured, you are not fine. I promise you, if I get anywhere near any of those men who took you they're going to regret it. I'm just glad the police rounded them all up."

"Well, the police aren't sure that they have yet," he said then sighed. He didn't want to worry her after everything else he'd put her through over the last twenty years but if he didn't tell her and she found out later he'd get a hiding, no matter his age. "There was an incident on the road earlier and they think it was because of everything that happened."

"What kind of incident? Don't sugar coat things for me, you know I'm not that kind of omega, there's a reason you turned out like you did."

"A car accident. But everyone's fine and I heard they arrested the person." He hadn't heard anything of the sort but he figured McGarrett was good at his job and would have done so by now. He had faith in him. He'd even googled McGarrett and Five-0 earlier when Mindy had given him access in her office and he'd been impressed with what he'd seen.

"I had no idea Hawaii was so dangerous. Maybe we should have asked about you being brought home."

"I tried that, Ma. They said I have to stay here right now for a bunch of different reasons, there's no point in arguing about it."

"But if you wind up with an alpha and stay in Hawaii I'll hardly ever get a chance to see you."

"Hawaii isn't exactly where I'd like to stay but it's my own fault. Mostly. I guess it's my punishment for running and I'm just going to have to live with it."

"There could be worse places to end up. I mean you've got palm trees and sunshine.That's good, right? And we can come there on vacations and visit our future grandkids."

"Sounds peachy, mom. Listen, I gotta go or I'll miss my ORC appointed dinner time, okay?" he said, with just a hint of ire at the fact that he had to respond to specific meal times or risk not eating and he wasn't going to give the doctors an excuse to come near him citing malnutrition or something equally as ridiculous. "I'll see you later."

"Good night sweetie," she told him, given the time different, she was probably about to go to bed.

*

"I need a favor," Steve told the nervous beta the moment he opened the front door and stood there, red vine sticking out of his mouth and hair and clothes disheveled. Steve made a point of rearranging the way his holster and belt were on his waist to draw attention to the weapon and then lifted the bag of sweet treats he'd remembered to bring with him. "To get these you've got to come with me."

"Gifts aside, do I even have a choice?" the beta asked.

"Not really," Steve responded with a smile and gestured for him to follow.

*

After introducing Toast to Jerry, he let the two of them get to work on things that Steve barely recognized as being in the English language. He had sat for a while nearby, then he'd paced and made the two betas so nervous and twitchy that he'd had to leave the room and go to the vending machine for a snack. 

The pressure of the alpha looming over them had slowed them down, so Steve had tried to concentrate on his rumbling stomach instead. The mixture of different junk foods he had for what was essentially his dinner were going to at least give him some kind of sugar boost and the coffee he'd grab later would probably be swill but would have the caffeine he needed. He suspected he'd be up most of the night.

He was envious of the fact that Danny would be getting served real, decent food at the ORC right around now. He wouldn't have to worry about deciding on what to eat or bothering to cook, it would be healthy and provided for him. That was the life. 

Steve bit into his snickers. He was getting regular updates from the HPD patrol car out front of the ORC and nothing suspicious had been spotted so Danny should be perfectly safe where he was right now. And probably oblivious to any threat but that was Steve's job: to be the one to protect and worry and allow others to go about their business as normal.

Why was Danny so worried about revealing who his alpha was? It couldn't be that fear of rejection Doctor Shaw had said about. He was an omega prime, an alpha would be out of his or her mind to refuse that. There were benefits from the state, there was automatic government healthcare for the whole family, there was pride, there was that alpha satisfaction of being with an omega that really, at the end of it all, a beta just couldn't provide. And there was always the potential for love. 

No, Danny had to be worried about something else if he didn't want the bond he'd accidentally started. Of course, Danny had run, he had a bad relationship with alphas but there would still be a biological imperative that would niggle in his mind. That was just how omegas worked. That was probably how he'd wound up unconsciously bonding - it was his body's decision more than his mind's. 

So if he really didn't want the bond it had to be because of the alpha his body had chosen for him. 

Which must mean that Danny had the same dislike of Gray that Steve had. It made sense. Steve felt that Danny was a kindred soul when it came to judging people. He was probably scared that being with that doctor for life was distasteful. Maybe her constant need to study him, considering that was a major reason that he'd run, would be an instant turn off for the omega. Blonde hair and a pretty face could cause some initial curiosity, but it wore off once she opened her mouth. 

Danny was blond. And pretty. There would be pretty blonde omega babies from that union. The ORC directors would salivate over all that possibility.

Steve wrinkled his nose in disgust as he looked at his chocolate bar and threw the last half away. He felt like throwing up. The chocolate must be bad.

*

Danny blinked away the brightness as Gray let go of his eyelids and stopped shining the light into his eyes. She frowned at him. It was the third time she'd checked his eyes this evening and it seemed like she didn't like what she was seeing. She patted his leg and turned to the nearby table and compared notes while Danny remained sitting where he was. She had asked earlier on about more tests she'd like to run on how his arousal was building but he'd refused, reminding her that he was not going to consent to anything of a sexual nature. Her eyes continually moved to his groin with a longing look every time they saw each other. She was itching to practically dissect him and it made him the most uncomfortable he'd ever felt in his life.

Now here he was again, sitting on the examination chair that at least was more like one from a dentist's office than a gynecologist, but he still felt exposed, like she could pounce on him. Her hands had a tendency to roam as it was.

She turned to look down on him as she explained her recent findings. "The change in your eye color isn't progressing as I'd have expected."

"What does that mean?" he asked, genuinely curious, but she watched him, doubting his innocence.

"It means that from the outset of the bond, there was a steady decrease in gold. Even through the majority of today we were monitoring a decline. But it's slowed this evening, almost to a stand still. That doesn't make sense," she crossed her arms as she watched him, straightening her posture to make herself look bigger. "You've clearly been opposed to the bond since we discovered it, that might be significant."

"I'm pretty sure if omegas could halt the bond purely by willing it, we'd have been doing that all this time," he said. Sure, omegas had more rights these days, but in the past they were bartered for, used for political gain or wealth or any other expectation. If they'd been opinionated enough to not want a specific bond then being able to stop it would have been instrumental in the acknowledgement of the power they could wield; would have allowed them more respect.

"There's a lot we don't know about changes to omegas that occur with age. With the need for younger bonds to produce children, we just don't have a lot of scientific study on older, single omegas and single 'primes' are just unheard of by your age. There's always the possibility for something biological at work. And then the question becomes whether that's a trait of all omegas or something uniquely wrong with you. We really need to test this further," she said, biting her lip as her mind began to formulate what tests to run. "Okay, Danny, I'm going to need you to take your pants off and sit back up here with your legs open."

"I've told you I don't know how many times, but no. I don't want to be touched there."

"And I've lost track of how many times I've said before, but these are medical procedures that are necessary. I need to see for myself just how you're doing and if there's any physical issue at play here. The best way for me to do that is examine you properly to rule anything out. The last thing we want is a fight over this and we waste time by getting permissions from your family. Or if you talk to me about your alpha, we can settle any issue of permission that way," she dangled the last as bait.

Danny hated everything about this and the more contact he had with Gray the more he hated her, but he was constantly being painted into a corner and had no choice but to submit lest his refusals become not just a matter for his father to get involved in, but could become something much more public and he valued his privacy. Hell, being on the run for so long, he was used to hiding and not drawing attention to himself. But he'd feel a lot more uncomfortable with people knowing things about him than if he just relented for the next ten minutes to letting her touch him and never thought about it again.

He grumbled but said nothing as he got up to remove his pants and underwear before sitting again, her face smugly satisfied at winning the battle. She had him sit with his legs far apart but was more tender as she helped with his damaged knee. She rucked his t-shirt up, exposing a large patch of his stomach and he kept one hand over the edge of the material, not allowing her to get him more exposed. Not that his chest should matter compared to what else she was doing, but a sliver of dignity was better than nothing as far as he was concerned. 

She moved his dick up, running her fingers down the shaft as she used one hand to hold it flat on his stomach. With her other gloved hand, she opened him up more, allowing her to use her middle fingers to press and rub against his opening. She lightly caressed his dick again before leaving it alone as she needed her hand to flick her thumb over his nub and make his breath hitch. Using that hand to keep him open she used the other to press two fingers inside, twisting them, crooking them as they pushed deep and she pressed down on part of his bare stomach. As she brought her fingers out of him, she peeled the glove off, using it as a makeshift vial for what she had 'collected'.

Rolling her chair over to the table, she lifted a speculum that seemed bigger to him than the one she'd used at the hospital. "This should be a little easier than last time. You seem wet enough that there shouldn't be a problem sliding it in." 

Danny wasn't exactly convinced that her logic was medically sound or if she was saying it for his benefit but he hoped she was right. It had been difficult to have it in him before. The stretch had been unpleasant and painful at times as he got used to the intrusion. She put a new glove on and then moved into a position at the base of his chair. Her eyes were focused on him with unwavering attention as she began to push the instrument into him. He could have sworn this one was longer, going deeper, but it could have been his imagination. He wasn't sure but he knew he didn't trust her to take things easy on him. 

She bit her bottom lip as she widened it and Danny tensed. She halted long enough to rub a hand over his thigh. "Easy, Danny, relax and bear down on it. Once you get used to it you won't even notice it's there. Male alpha penises are much larger than this is. Of course, alpha females are much easier to take during sex than the males so that might work out for you if you continue to find all this uncomfortable. I'm just going to help you a little," she said and used her thumb to rub and press down on his clit.  

He let his head fall back to the chair and looked to the ceiling as he murmured a long 'fuuuck'. As much as she could excuse this as a necessary test, they both knew what she was doing right now was designed to stimulate him and he could feel it working. As she continued, she pushed the instrument a little further and at his immediate tensing, she rubbed harder as a distraction, pinching a little to draw his attention to something he could admit was pleasurable even if he didn't want it. She proceeded to do as much as she could one handed - keeping her thumb brushing repeatedly over his nub as she took swabs and brushes, inserting them to take her samples. 

She moved away from him, leaving the speculum where it was while she marked her samples with whatever labeling she needed. He looked down his body, stretching his neck to see where the apparatus was sticking out of him and as he tightened his muscles he could see it moving in response and it freaked him out enough that he halted everything, even his breathing, as the irrational side of his brain worried he'd wind up sucking the thing in further. 

Gray turned back to him, satisfied by the way his body was wide open for her, exposed to the world though she was the only one in the room and was clearly savoring all of it. She opened a drawer, producing a small bottle. She clicked the lid open and smeared the lubricant over the fingers of one hand. "Okay Danny, while we're doing this I think it wise to do a rectal examination."

"Why?" he asked, his voice higher than he'd have liked. "What does my ass have to do with anything?"

"Everything is connected down there and this helps check your pelvic organs. If you feel any particular pain, I need you to let me know," she rubbed over his ass hole before inserting the middle finger. Her other hand slowly withdrew the speculum where it was still inside him. It felt strange to have both his holes invaded by the doctor, a digit going into his ass while the smooth plastic was removed. He thought he'd be able to relax until she then used her forefinger of the hand already at his ass and pressed inside his opening, simultaneously moving the fingers in and out of both holes in a parody of fucking him as they explored the cavities under the guise of searching for something medically wrong with him. She pressed down on his belly again and he grimaced.

Her hand caressed down over his stomach fingers first as she lifted his dick. She squeezed it as she twisted her hand around it tightly and he saw a pearl of inert fluid come out the top. Intending to collect it, she carefully laid his dick down again before reaching for another swab and running it over the tip while still fucking her fingers into him, twisting them, pressing them deep and holding them inside of him. She left his cock alone and moved back to stimulating his clit with her thumb flicking over the nub.

"It seems as if the bond is still there going by how fast your body is responding to my touch," she told him. "You're getting incredibly slick down here. It's already beginning to trickle out and my fingers are covered in it. It would be best for me to help finish you off and use the results in my study. At this rate, it won't take long and leaving you unsatisfied just seems cruel." 

He felt a shiver run through his body at her words and it was palpable enough that she suppressed a satisfied grin and took it as an affirmative answer. He groaned out a 'stop' as she sped the flicks of her thumb and even scratched her nail against his clit but his words were cut off by the sensation. The heavy stimulation made him gasp and he rolled his hips as she crooked her fingers again looking for just the right spot inside him. He'd touched himself over the years and knew he enjoyed sensation against his clit more so than anywhere else and she seemed to be cottoning onto that. She pressed her fingers deep inside him and crooked them while she reached under the chair with the other and opened a box. 

Producing a small egg shaped object, she turned it on and with the noise of the vibrations he knew instantly what it was. He gasped. "Ah! Nnnn-"

As his 'no' was cut off she pressed the vibrator against him, the oscillation held just against the tip of his clit made him grip to the arm rests on the chair and lift his ass from the pleather where his skin was beginning to stick to it with sweat. He could swear he heard her stifle a giggle of her own pleasure as she pressed it tighter against him and it was all too much. He reached down, trying to push her and the vibrator away but it was ineffectual. He felt his entire body tighten until the wave of orgasm swept through him, pulsing around her finger as she watched intently, keeping the vibrator against him until the beating of his body began to subside.

It was over as fast as it had started and somewhere in there, at the point where he should have said a resounding 'no, stop, I don't want this', the moment had passed him by and then he was coming. He had no doubt she'd done this before to other omegas. If she was an 'expert' at their biology then she was an 'expert' in manipulating their bodies for her own gain. Even when he'd touched himself, he'd never felt a release build that quickly. 

His eyes closed as his body shivered, a sheen of sweat cooling over him. The vibrator had been switched off but her fingers were still inside him, moving gently in and out. She sat there, practically between his legs as she kept fondling him, a hand running over his stomach soothingly and down over his dick and thighs. 

"Who says medical exams can't be enjoyable?" she smiled at him, pleased with herself. Just who had 'enjoyed' it was a topic left unbroached as she continued to touch him in a way he could only think of as petting. He may have experienced a pleasure, but it was far from satisfying.

She pulled her fingers out and brought a small plastic vial to his opening and made a show of collecting the slick that his body had produced. 

"Not many omegas I've seen produce this much slick. I could hear it slurping as my fingers moved. Test results should be interesting," she finished scraping what she wanted, plunging a finger back inside him one last time to see if she could get any more before giving up, allowing him to close his legs and he did so, shirking away from her. 

She lifted his pants and underwear, handing them to him and he couldn't redress fast enough. She told him he could go and recommended rest.

As Danny walked back through the corridors on his short trip back to his assigned room, he did so acutely aware that he was walking funny and not just because he was still using a cane to get around on his damaged knee. A few people walked by, one omega and a couple of alpha orderlies, and he was paranoid that they knew. As one orderly brushed by him he felt the man's hand touch briefly to his ass and he twisted his head back to look but the man didn't seem to have noticed, or was an expert at hiding any reaction to what he was able to get away with successfully. 

Or maybe it was all in Danny's head. He'd convinced himself this place was evil and nothing happened by accident. He'd been thinking all ORCs were bad ever since he was a teenager and that was ingrained in him. He was also hyper aware of the scrutiny he faced as a prime and he got the feeling that Doctor Gray was also really good at covering her tracks when it came to what she did to the omegas. He knew she was renowned for her studies but those other doctors hadn't been in the room with her when she was touching omegas, how would they really know what was going on?

She was overbearing, she was determined, she wanted what she wanted. Danny could tell that he was her current fixation and nothing was going to get in the way of what she was going to accomplish. He didn't want to be a guinea pig but he had very few routes out of it. 

He turned into his room and closed the door behind him. There was no lock on the door and he pulled a chair over from the small desk and used it to block the handle. It was flimsy but it would help at least a little and made him feel better. 

He crossed his arms and rubbed up and down over his biceps, a chill still in his bones from the revulsion. The thing he wanted to do most was wash, but there was no en suite beyond a toilet and small sink and the last thing he was going to do was leave his room to go to a communal shower. He'd yet to find the camera in his room; it must be hidden well but surely it was there and in much the same way he was convinced they would be filming the omega's shower. Big brother truly was watching him now and he trusted nothing about the place. Even the examination he'd just had was recorded but there was no way he could use it to accuse Doctor Gray of anything improper as she would have every excuse in the book ready to explain why she had done everything she'd done. 

Unless he'd said a more fervent 'no'. Actually jumped up from the table. Why didn't he do that? Was it shock at her actions? He'd been anticipating how much she'd wanted to study everything about him so why would any of that have come as a surprise to him? He felt dirty. Maybe he was wrong. Maybe the bond was with her and maybe he was doing some kind of mental block on it. Maybe he'd not been firmer in his abhorrence because a part of him wanted it. Maybe he'd cum so fast because of that, too. 

He threw himself onto the bed and covered his head with the pillow long enough to give a frustrated scream into the thick material. He then rolled to his side and clutched the pillow to him like a child would a stuffed toy. He thought of McGarrett: the only alpha he'd ever met that he felt an innate trust in. He was a cop, couldn't he do anything to help Danny out? He hadn't seen the man in hours and felt like he missed his presence.

Wait.

He hadn't seen him in hours. And his eyes hadn't changed color again… in hours. If that was a related issue then his change could be dependent on proximity to the alpha. 

It could be related to his age. Younger omegas going through a bond needed contact with the alpha but the changes continued even if they weren't constantly together. Maybe something to do with hormones or brain chemistry that happened later in life? Maybe? 

He was no scientist but somehow it made sense to him that it could be that. Perhaps it was a quirk of being a prime like Gray had suggested, it was just that she was thinking along different lines than Danny - she thought it something wrong with him while he thought it was something natural. It all made some weird, logical sense and shored up the sharpening, consolidating thoughts in Danny's head that McGarrett was the one he'd been drawn to. The alpha who didn't want an omega, who didn't know he'd returned the bond probe that Danny had initiated. 

Danny was still at square one. Still thinking the best way forward was to break the bond once they were in agreement. But he still wanted McGarrett to come along and save him from this place, from Gray and her unwelcome hold over him. He'd never wanted an alpha to do anything for him, had never wanted their help, but right now he did and maybe that made him weak but damnit, he'd been strong long enough, fought off so much crap.

As he lay there, he remembered how Turner had thrust his grubby fat fingers inside him, practically salivating at the excuse Danny had given him to touch there when he'd spat in the man's face. It was a more obviously salacious look Turner had given him, but Gray held a similar smirk when she'd had the opportunity to use his body for her own advantage. In his head, they morphed into one evil face, one taunting voice. He curled up, bringing his knees to his tummy and feeling a spike of discomfort that reminded him of everywhere Gray had just had her fingers and he shuddered. He moved a hand to hold tightly between his legs and pressed it to his groin in some useless show of protection but he didn't want to touch himself there at all, not even to clean up.

He wiped his nose and leaking eyes against the pillow case and sniffed. He had a feeling all of this was far from over and he worried about what the next day would bring. 


	6. Chapter 6

He was starving but he was staying put where he was, sitting on his bed and watching as the knocking against the door made the chair he'd placed under the handle bump each time. It wouldn't take much to remove it but they hadn't made that show of force yet.

"Move the chair, Danny, this has gone on long enough. You need to come with me to the examination room," Gray told him through the door, voice stern and impatient. One thing it proved to Danny was that there was a camera in his room if they knew how he'd blocked himself in. He still hadn't located it, but it sickened him to think that anyone could watch him in bed or getting undressed. Other omegas who didn't realize they were being watched would probably walk around naked or even masturbate and not know they had an audience. 

It amazed him that society didn't think it cruel or an overstep. He'd heard excuses for all sorts of oppressive rules. It was for their safety, it was secure, there were protocols to ensure only the right people had access to anything, permissions were sought from guardians. But systems could be abused.

Gray had used everything to her advantage so far, and he knew she'd continue. She walked a very thin line between what was right and wrong, misusing her seat of power. Danny had spent the night trying to work out how he could fight back. No judge would listen to him, that was for sure. He didn't even think he'd be able to get his parents to listen or Doctor Shaw. 

When he was young, he assumed they didn't listen because he was a teenager and no one ever believed teenage tall tales or opinions. His problem now was that he'd been on the run so they assumed he'd say anything to find a way back out again, including besmirching the name of a renowned doctor. And Gray had expertly grasped upon his need for privacy, to be his own person, run his own life and use it against him; telling him that this would all get out and be messy if he told anyone. He didn't want the embarrassment, didn't want the pity, didn't want to be thought of as a liar. He wanted a quiet life yet trying to get that seemed to just land him in more trouble.

He'd thought of McGarrett. Envisioned him being at the Center at exactly the right moment to intervene. Imagined him kicking everyone's asses. Hell, he imagined joining in and the two of them working perfectly together like it was an action movie until those in the wrong begged and pleaded for forgiveness. _Oh, if only…_

"Danny?" A new voice had arrived, calmer, more patient. It was Shaw. "Danny, what's going on? You want to talk about this?"

"I want to be left alone," he answered back.

He could hear the muffled argument on the other side, Shaw trying to reason her way through this while Gray, as an alpha, wanted everything her way, advocating for the door to be knocked down and Danny dragged out and told to behave.

"He's not a child, he's a traumatized victim. You can't just steamroll over that," Shaw told her in return. Danny didn't feel traumatized, not like everyone expected of him. Sure, he'd had a few moments, but overall he felt fine. He could milk the trauma angle in hopes that it would help him against Gray, but he'd feel guilty doing that while other omegas that they'd rescued legitimately needed the help. 

"This is bigger than me, bigger than him. He needs to do his part, even if he complains," Gray responded. 

"Why don't you go to your office? I'll bring Danny there in a while," Shaw said and Gray backed down enough on the proviso that she'd get her way shortly, then she left. Danny didn't know if Shaw was alone or those imposing orderlies would still be there with her. "Danny, why barricade yourself in?"

"Because I'd rather be in here than out there being poked and prodded and working to some schedule that's been concocted by people who think they know me better than I know myself."

"How about you let me in, and we can talk about it face to face?" she asked. 

Danny knew his position was tenuous at best by barricading himself inside. It would only last so long and he'd rather keep Shaw on side than have her decide with Gray on how to proceed. "Fine," he said. "Leave the grunts at the door," he added once he'd opened up and spotted the two orderlies hanging nearby, keeping a few other curious omegas away from what was going on, probably not wanting any dissonance to spread.

Shaw came in, closing the door behind them so they could have a modicum of privacy. Whether the cameras around the building were sound equipped was another question Danny had. As much as he was itching to ask about the details of the place, he knew they'd think he was asking while planning an escape and clamp down on him. It might also be in his best interests to plead ignorance - it could be an advantage in the long run. 

"What's going on? Looking yourself in a room? What about your claustrophobia?"

"There's a clear route out. And it was my decision to do it, not someone else's."

"Ah. Well, when you put it that way, it's obvious," she said as she sat on the edge of the bed. As they heard his stomach rumble she pointed at it. "Hunger strike too or…?"

"Being left alone by the doctors was preferable to eating. Read into that what you will," he said. 

"I feel like there's something you're not telling me," she began and held up a hand at his 'd'uh' look. "I'm just not sure if this is about who your alpha is or something else. I know we've only talked a few times over the past couple of days so of course there's plenty I don't know about you but if whatever you're holding back is important-"

"It's not important. And I'm not talking about my alpha because that's between me and hi-- whoever."

"So you wanted to make a statement but it's not important and you're not going to tell us what it's about? That seems rather at odds."

"Maybe I'm just waiting things out, you know? Killing time on my own until…"

"Until you get a chance to escape? Until you get rescued by someone? Family, the OLP… your alpha?"

"Look, I mean this with all due respect, butt out of my life. Quit trying to head shrink me. Just let me be and tell Gray to keep her hands to herself," he paced the room. "That's what I want."

She stood and came closer to him, stopping his movement and placing a hand on each shoulder. "I know it's difficult, but no matter what doctor is assigned to you, they'd have to touch you. They have to scrutinize your body and it's uncomfortable and I completely understand how you feel but there's nothing they're going to do to you that will hurt you. They're trying to find anything that might be wrong, they're trying to make sure you're in the best health you can be."

"And they don't do it for their pleasure?" Danny asked, but there was a sneer of disbelief to it that Shaw didn't confront. 

"No, they don't," she answered. 

Typical beta. She was avoiding any real confrontation. She'd rather sweep things under the rug even before she knew about it. Ignorance was bliss. Having a beta as the lead psychologist at the Center played right into Gray's hands and Danny knew right then that there was no point in opening up to Shaw about it. Hell, he'd just keep quiet with her over everything from now on. 

And his time wasting was up. There was no miraculous rescue this morning and no escape attempt through the windows as they were barred. There was no appearance by a cop who wanted his help further in this case of theirs. Not that he thought he'd be much help, but getting that opportunity was something he found himself longing for, either from his childhood dream of being a cop, or just as a distraction for the time being. 

He had to suck it up and get on with his day and pray to God he didn't get himself arrested for snapping someone's neck if they touched him the wrong way again because this time he'd have his wits about him to put a stop to it, no doubt about that.

"Is it too late to get breakfast?" he asked and she smiled, thinking she'd made progress with him. 

"I'm sure we can make an exception this time."

*

Sleeping on the couch in his office wasn't the best of ideas and luckily he didn't do it often. He hadn't even meant to but while waiting on progress in the case, he'd slipped down the leather sofa and dozed off. He woke with a crick in his neck and shoulders. Checking the time, he noted he'd only slept for a couple of hours at best. He'd been up most of the night going over what they knew but he'd been distracted often by thoughts of Danny and how safe he was. The amount of times he'd contacted the HPD patrol that was stationed outside the ORC had been over the top, even he could admit that.

His main worry was in just how well hidden this trafficking scheme had been. How long had they been using the island for their route? And just who was on the top of the pyramid? He still didn't know what the intention was by using the OLP to attack the car. Did they want Danny dead? Did they just want him to remain quiet? Or did the want to recapture him and sell him to some rich psycho in a foreign land; someone who had placed an order for him like he was a menu item and refused to take any replacement, demanding the traffickers find Danny for him for an exorbitant fee. Until Steve knew for sure he had to assume the traffickers wanted Danny dead, and he just knew they had the money and means to do so even within the confines of the Center. Some well placed bribery and it could be done.

He didn't trust anyone out with the team. And Danny himself, of course. He wanted to be there with him, keeping Danny in Kevlar and somewhere secret.

His late night thoughts had also drifted to Shaw's words, that he was a likely candidate as alpha. It seemed so strange to him that he could bond without even knowing. That both an alpha _and_ omega would have no real clue they'd chosen each other? It was unheard of to him and that was what held him back the most. He had to be 100% on this and until he was, he'd assume he was just tapping into some primal need to protect an omega, even if not his.

Even if he did spend an inordinate amount of time thinking about Danny, worrying about him, dreaming about him.

He looked through the glass of his office to see where Toast and Jerry were still working. They'd both clocked that he was awake and were wary about what he might do. As much as he wanted an update, itched to hound them for information, he'd control himself and the adrenaline coursing through him. He'd have been immediately informed if there were problems anywhere, after all, everyone knew they'd been in a shit load of trouble if he wasn't.

*

"Hey," Katie said as she came to sit next to Danny at his table in the small canteen. Shaw had rustled him up some food and told him she'd be back in half an hour. He'd been watched by the ever present cameras and the orderly that seemed to have become his shadow this morning. "They're shipping me out in a few hours. I'm headed home to Denver, mom signed off on the paperwork early this morning."

"I wish I could go home," Danny said. "It's the one thing I figured I'd have going for me if I ever got caught, but that's not exactly worked out."

She reached over and squeezed his hand. "It might happen once your parents arrive. They probably just want an excuse for a Hawaiian vacation and will take you home with them. Although... I forgot about the bond thing. Maybe you do have to stay here."

"Exactly," he said. "But even so, the ORC don't want me to go anywhere. Gray's practically salivating at getting to run her tests on a prime. She's not giving that up in a hurry."

"Damn," she agreed. "Doctor Victor hasn't been too bad but I'm just a regular omega."

"There's no such thing," Danny said to her, making her smile.

"I don't know what's going to happen though, I could get stuck with a doctor I don't like. Mom said I have to live in the ORC there since she doesn't want to take on the responsibility of making sure I don't run again.  So that sucks, but there's already a list of potential alphas waiting for me so I might not be there long."

"Don't forget that no matter what alpha you pick, you get to make your own choices. Don't let anyone dictate anything to you."

He stood, allowing her a hug before she dashed off to get ready and pack the meager possessions she had acquired since being here. He sighed. She seemed happy but he worried she was believing the rhetoric that it was safer to stay in the system than out of it. Given what had happened to them, he had no doubt that he was the only one left thinking life was better outside fending for yourself and he didn't blame the others, young as they were, to have been scared into toeing the line.

Danny would now be the only 'live in guest' at the facility, will all the other rescued omegas going home and those that were local coming in sporadically as day patients for check ups and testing as well as dealing with whatever stage they had reached in pairing with an alpha.

The orderly waited a moment then came over and wrapped a big hand around Danny's elbow. "Doc's waiting for you."

Reaching the examination room, the alpha switched what side he was walking beside Danny on and as they entered, he released his arm and gave him a shove forward with a hand on his backside. He glared over his shoulder and tightened his fist on his cane but made no move to do anything about it, which just made the orderly wink at him.

Gray was hunched over her desk, two computer screens that she was looking between and copious print outs littering the table top. "Danny, finally, take a seat and we'll get started," she said as he moved to the same chair as he'd been in before, eying it warily before he climbed on.

She immediately grabbed her opthalmoscope and leaned in close, shining the light in his eyes looking for any obvious further deterioration. She moved larger equipment into place so that she could photograph into his eyes to better judge changes. Once done, she left him sitting and moved back to her desk concentrating on the images. If she always acted like this, he might not have such a problem with her. 

Engrossed in her work, she was nevertheless frustrated as she looked up at him. "Minimal change. I don't understand this."

"Maybe it's my age."

"Your other levels are consistent and within norms. It would have to be something that changed between initial testing and last night. A bond doesn't run at this snail's pace after being normal for almost 24 hours." She she dismissed him out of hand as she came back, frowning in contemplation as she looked down on him. He was trying to sit relaxed in the chair while making a conscious effort to keep his legs closed, crossed at the ankles. "I'll just have to run a few again. If the slow down occurred right when we examined you last night, it might not show up the true extent of a change. Or it could be an aberration. If it's been stagnant for over twelve hours now, then we'll be in a better place to worry. Lift your shirt."

Her stethoscope was cold as it pressed to listen to his heartbeat. He wasn't fooled at how long it took her, nor the small detour her hand took to let her fingers play across his nipple and trail down his torso to his belly button where the hand lingered. She drew blood from his arm, squeezing his forearm after in an attempt at comfort.

"Okay, I think a repeat of yesterday is in order."

"No, it's really not. I refuse."

"Are we going to go through this again? It's getting really tiresome, Danny."

"I didn't like it," he told her emphatically.

"Really? Because your body certainly did. That was a quick orgasm you experienced and a very wet one. Your body loved it, I don't understand why you wouldn't want to embrace that again?"

Danny glanced back to where the orderly still stood near the door, hands in his pockets, making his groin look like it was bulging out. "That's what happens when you press a vibrator against someone's genitals."

"That doesn't negate my question. Because wanted or not, an orgasm is something to be enjoyed when it happens. If this is about the clinical nature of the office then perhaps we can compromise and you can masturbate for me."

He sat up and leaned closer, keeping his voice low so only the two of them could hear it. "I wouldn't give you the satisfaction."

She smiled at him, but it didn't hide the sinister look in her eyes. Keeping her voice equally low she spoke in hushed tone. "You're lucky that Doctor Shaw wants me to go easy on you this morning. If it were up to me, I'd have Tyrone there hold you down while I," she glanced down his body with a lecherous eye. "Well, while I run all the tests I want. Make no mistake, Danny. I'll have you spread out on my chair again by this afternoon. Shaw can't hold this position against me for long." She pushed herself away with an angry, promising look and started to work. "Go back to your room, Danny. But trust me, if these test results don't satisfy me I will seek answers however I need to."

He couldn't get out quickly enough. Tyrone watched him limp back out of the room, cane in hand, then gave him a look that signified that he'd heard enough to know what was going on and anticipated what might happen later if he was still on shift. Danny's heart was hammering in his chest as he made his way back down the corridor to the sanctuary of his small room. He barely saw anyone else, and it made him aware of just how alone he was here now. With the rest of the omegas shipped out and others no where near the living quarters, he was surrounded by square-jawed, muscled alpha orderlies and a doctor who had no moral compass. He felt smaller than he had when the human traffickers had got hold of them.

If Billy were here, well, the man would proclaim loudly how screwed they were, but he'd stay defiant and looking for an opportunity to get out. Danny hadn't seen or heard anything about McGarrett all morning and he worried that the case wasn't going well, or that he was wrong about Steve being his alpha. If it were anyone else, Danny would slit his own wrists.

Which was a terrifying thought. Not just that suicide had fleetingly crossed his mind, but that he didn't want anyone but Steve.

He put the chair back under his door handle again.

*

"Scientists say they can't find a reason why omegas are dying out but that's just what they tell the public," Jerry told Jenna. "The Nazis wanted to wipe out betas and take full control. They experimented on trying to guarantee only alphas and omegas at birth but it backfired and had a detrimental effect on the omega population."

"Okay, I get that the Nazis were dicks to everyone, but population levels were changing well before the 1940s," Jenna pointed out. "And Nazis only did that in Europe."

"The virus they accidentally created was airborne and spread everywhere."

"If we're making small talk I assume you've cracked the case for us," Steve interrupted as he strode back into the bull pen with a morning coffee in hand. He'd taken a scant few moments to go wash up in the Palace's bathrooms and change clothes before getting straight back to work. 

"Actually yes," Jerry answered, glancing over to where Toast was curled up asleep on a couch hugging a blanket to himself. "With Toast's help and Jenna's access we were finally able to backtrack the person who sent her the message. It bounced everywhere, I'd never have narrowed it down myself but Toast came up with a new tracing program that's really going to help us out in other cases, too. Anyway," he continued as he could see Steve wanted him to get to the point. "The Hawaii State Public Library, that's where it came from. I called Chin and he and Kono were going to check it out before coming in this morning; see if there's CCTV footage of our guy."

"Great," Steve said, feeling they were getting somewhere at last. 

"Ooh, speak of the devil," Jerry said, pulling his phone from his pocket and laying it on the table top as he answered. "Hey Chin, got you on speakerphone, McGarrett is here."

"We've got footage of the guy we think sent the message based on the time it was sent and who was using the computers. Sending it to you now," Chin said over the tinny sound of the phone speaker. Jerry futzed with his phone to connect it to the table and then transferred the image up onto the main screen. 

Steve crossed his arms and tilted his head as he regarded it. There was something familiar about the man, even if it was a hazy, black and white CCTV image. He just needed a second to- "I know who that is," he said, clicking his fingers as he pointed to the screen. "He's a security guard at the ORC, I saw him there yesterday."

"Want us to meet you there?" Chin asked through the phone line.

"No, Lou and I will take care of it," he then turned to Jerry. "Do me a favor and alert the HPD patrol car stationed at the Center not to let anyone leave before we get there."

"Got it, boss."

*

Lou hung up the phone and turned in his seat to face Steve. "Uniforms say the guy is listed as being on duty. How do you want to play this?"

"We go in, arrest him, and make sure he tells us everything he knows," Steve said, concentrating on the road as he drove, lights and sirens on.

"A plan simple in it's elegance," Grover said with a smile and a dose of sarcasm.

Steve sighed, he really didn't think they needed more of a plan in dealing with this guy. "We do it quickly. If he's given the chance to try anything it could put Danny in danger and the last thing I want is the Governor breathing down my throat about it. He's already on two-hourly updates; I don't want to be wasting any more time with his interference."

Steve turned off the lights and siren as they got closer, not wanting to spook anyone. He parked out front and he and Lou decided to head in without drawing weapons. The guard, Dmitri Mannis, had seen Steve before as well as the HPD patrols and hadn't seemed nervous. Seeing Steve and Lou arriving should seem normal and it was best for them to catch him unawares.

Steve quietly convinced the receptionist to get Doctor Shaw for him, which meant the foyer was empty except for them and Mannis who was sitting behind the security desk. Steve turned and leaned nonchalantly as they waited, giving Mannis a tight smile.

Lou slowly walked over to the security desk and kept the guard included in the light-hearted conversation they would use to distract him. "McGarrett, seriously, if you want to snag yourself an omega there are much easier ways than coming by with updates for the doctor," he turned more to Mannis with a conspiratorial wink. "You ever had guys come by here so often when there's no real need to?"

Mannis smiled, inserting himself into the joke. "Not usually. Not even those OLP protesters."

"You get a lot of that here?" Lou leaned over the desk, keeping it loose but making sure he was positioned close. "I thought the Island was pretty okay in their book."

"Those crackpots won't be happy until all the Centers are shut nationwide. Worldwide, even. They should all be locked up. Omegas need to be controlled."

Steve took up a position between the desk and the doors and stood. "Sounds like there's no love lost there."

"Is that why you set them up?" Lou asked, keeping the smile light and his tone friendly though Mannis sat back, wary.

"What are you talking about?" he scoffed. 

"We know you got onto their message board and told them where to be and when. And you lied about who was in the car."

Mannis looked at both cops, opened his mouth to answer then decided not to. He really thought he could take on both Lou and Steve and get away and that was stupid. As big as he was for an alpha, he didn't stand a chance against the two men. Lou made a grab for him that made him attempt to swerve only for Steve to body slam him against the wall just at the moment that Shaw was approaching the door giving her the fright of her life. 

Steve grabbed Mannis before he could get near the beta or her receptionist and threw him to the ground where Lou then used his height advantage to practically sit on the man's back as he cuffed him. 

"What the hell is going on?" Shaw asked, shoulders raised and mouth open in shock. 

"You need better security," Steve told her. He was about to approach the man, anger no longer hidden behind the necessities of the job, but Lou moved Mannis behind himself and put a hand out to stop Steve from getting closer. 

"I'll take care of this. The team can handle getting him to talk. Why don't you stay here, fill the Doc in on what this scumbag was up to and maybe check and see if everyone in the facility is okay."

*

Danny winced as the door came crashing open and in walked Tyrone followed by Gray and another orderly. Something had been happening elsewhere in the building, Danny had heard a vague commotion from somewhere at the front and whatever it was must be distraction enough for Shaw and she wasn't around to keep any kind of control. Gray and her loyal thugs - who didn't look like they had a brain to split between them - were taking advantage of the situation.

"Danny, this is getting ridiculous," she told him as she flicked a strand of hair from her face. He was convinced her wild eyes betrayed a growing insanity and it scared him. She wanted something and she wasn't going to wait any longer, even if it meant destroying her own career in the process. 

He backed up to the wall, keeping his head low so as not to be confrontational. "You have no right to be here, Shaw won't-"

"I have _every_ right to be here," she interrupted him. "I'm tired of these games you're playing. I'm clearly your alpha, and the quicker you just admit that, the better."

"No," Danny told her, adamant. "It's not true."

She approached him and Danny stayed stock still by the wall. He knew he was willing to fight against her and the two others, but the likelihood of him succeeding when he was already injured was low. He just hoped someone would come along and stop her. She dipped her head in close, eyes examining his. "What are you doing to control it?" she asked, obsessed. "You're doing something, trying to stop us from bonding, I know it. There's no reason for the bond to have slowed to a crawl when we see each other constantly."

He could only assume her tests were still not coming out the way she wanted them to. But he knew, even without science's backing, that it was because he hadn't seen McGarrett since yesterday afternoon and for whatever biological reason, their bond needed to have them within sight of each other to fully continue growing. 

"It must be drugs. Search the room," she ordered the others while keeping him in place, eyes roaming. Her hand skirted down his body and slowed over his groin. 

He reached down, a hand wrapping around her wrist to halt her as he spat out his words. " _Don't touch me._ "

"You think I'm not good enough for a prime like you? I'm a doctor. I've researched omegas my whole life, dedicated myself to them. I _deserve_ an omega of my own and I deserve one who I'm guaranteed will give me omega children that I can use to further my research! That's _**you**_ , Danny. And the bond already began. No matter what you do, what drugs you have hidden away, you can't stop this."

"Where would I have got drugs from?!" Danny asked, incredulous. "Between the traffickers and the hospital and here, someone would have found them." He was trying to get through to her but she was beyond such simple logic.

"There's nothing here," One of the orderlies said, the place now tossed.

"Then maybe it's on him," she smirked, hand gripping into his waistband. She kept her eyes on him but spoke to the men. "Keep him still," she ordered.

They didn't move at first and then one scoffed. "He's just an omega."

She turned to them, giving them a glare. "And before they brought him in here he killed the alpha holding him. He's a lot stronger than he looks, so get over here and hold him!"

Danny looked around, hoping something could be within reach to use as a weapon or that he could see a way out of his situation but there wasn't enough time for him to consider it. He had little time to react but pushed back against them all, trying to get away but each orderly took hold of an arm and shoved him back hard into the wall even though he was already against it. They exerted their power over him, grip bruising. His healing shoulder erupted in agony that made him cry out and took all of his attention as it whited out his vision. When he was aware again it was to find his pants and underwear were around his ankles. Gray had an arm across his chest, pinning him further.

She smirked at him as she stood, pressing herself close. "I need to check everywhere," she taunted and then her finger was pushed into him. The orderlies, brutes that they were, enjoyed watching Danny squirm. "There's nothing here. But oh, how wet you are, Danny. I told you your body wants me," she pulled her finger out, smudging some of the slick between her fingers and then reached down again. "I'll just use it as lube to check in his other hole for contraband," she threatened.

"No, stop," he said and Tyrone covered his mouth.

She thrust her middle finger inside his ass then used the forefinger to press back inside his hole. "Let him complain and scream as much as he wants, he's dripping wet and desperate for me to get him off." She finger fucked him faster as Tyrone and the other laughed. He tried to close his legs but the orderlies used their own to keep Danny's wide apart.

"No, please, _let me **go!**_ " Danny begged and then yelled and growled out, needing someone to put a stop to this.

*

"Luckily the arrest happened in a contained area, I don't think anyone currently in the facility will have noticed much," Shaw said as she sat in her office, Steve having explained to her where they were in the investigation and why Mannis was under arrest. "I'm happy to keep the HPD presence in the meantime, not least because we've lost a member of security with this."

"Frankly I'm concerned about whether Mannis is the only one here with ties to the trafficking ring. And until we can interrogate him and find out exactly what he's been doing, we can't be sure this Center is safe."

"And what do you propose Commander?"

"Shut everything down," he said, nonplussed by the immediately negative reaction Shaw gave him.

"Shutting down operations would panic omegas and their families, we can't do that. We don't even know if Mannis was a part of something bigger or this was just an opportunistic chance to make some money. Until you know for certain, we must act as if everything is normal."

"But it's not normal. If something were to happen to an omega here, _to Danny_ , after we knew the building was compromised it opens up the government _and you_ to law suits and possible jail time for neglect. You need to shut down, deal with the omegas through a hospital and let me take Danny into protective custody."

"I-" her answer was disrupted by a knock on the door by her worried looking receptionist.

"Doctor, there's a commotion," she said, hanging onto the door frame, unsure what she should and shouldn't say to alert Shaw to a problem.

The doctor straightened in her chair. "What kind of a commotion?" she asked, shooting Steve a worried look and he responded by sitting forward, ready to help, poised for danger.

"Room 17. The doctor she's.... I don't know but whatever she's doing, she's hurting him. I heard him yell."

"Room 17… that's Danny's room," she said, her eyes meeting Steve's. The alpha was up and out the door before she could finish her sentence; she could do nothing but trail after him, trying to keep up. "Commander!" she shouted, but he was single-minded.

Steve slid to a halt at the door he didn't even need to be told was Danny's. It wasn't just instinct as to where the omega was, but the door had splintered and a chair lay on its side just inside. The sight that greeted him made him see red, rage burning deep inside; two orderlies with vice-like grips on the omega who was clearly in pain from how it aggravated his injuries while Doctor Gray had her hand... _oh God, **oh Hell NO**_.

"Let him go!" Steve growled in a blind fury. He grabbed the first orderly and threw him across the bed with staggering strength, the man's head impacting the book shelf with such force that it knocked him out instantly. He shoved Gray back as he then attacked the other orderly. He got a few body blows in, deflected a punch the orderly threw at him and then grabbed him around the throat.

Shaw ignored the fighting but kept a close eye on Gray, who had fallen backwards over the discarded chair and was picking herself up, trying to get back to where Danny was now crumbled down on the floor. Shaw darted across the room, carefully staying out of Steve's way but wanting to get close to Danny, to make sure her patient was safe.

"Don't touch me," Danny told her as her hand hovered above him, stalled by his words and the fear behind them.

"It's okay, Danny, I won't hurt you."

"Don't touch me," he repeated. She didn't want to spook him further and so assessed what she could with her eyes. Physically he likely had no serious set backs but they would have to x-ray to be sure. He would be in pain and bruised and, as she cringed in sympathy, she mentally noted that the violation of his body would be uncomfortable for a day or two. Shaw caught Gray out of the corner of her eye. She'd never taken on an alpha so upfront before. She was a beta, it just wasn't in her nature to step up to a challenge. But she was a doctor, she was a good doctor, and she had vowed to protect her patients. Danny needed her help, and she'd let him down already and she wouldn't do so again.

She stood and turned, blocking Gray from getting closer, getting in a shoving match with her. Just before Gray could get a good grip on her, McGarrett was there. The second orderly was bleeding on the floor and Steve had a cut above his eye that trailed into his line of sight but nothing deterred him. He grabbed Madison Gray from behind, kicking the back of her knee out then throwing her bodily over his own shoulder to go crashing to the ground head first.

Immediate danger over, Steve wasted no time in making his way to Danny. "Hey, it's okay," he told the omega as he got to his knees in front of him. Danny wasn't so hesitant with the task force leader, allowing him to touch his arm. Steve helped Danny into a better sitting position that wasn't difficult for his damaged knee and then the omega leaned in, wrapping his arms around Steve and hugging into him.

Face pressed into Steve's neck he scowled at Gray who lay dazed a few feet away and did the same to Doctor Shaw. "This is why I hate research facilities," he said through gritted teeth.

"It's okay, I got you," Steve told him in a murmur, a hand combing through Danny's hair soothingly.

"I will not let you steal my omega!" Gray stumbled to get onto her knees, her anger and insanity still keeping the fight inside her going. "You'll pay for this! He's _**mine**_!"

"Doctor Gray, he is not a possession! And he is not yours!" Shaw bravely stood up to the out-of-action alpha. It was much easier to stand by her convictions knowing McGarrett was there if need be and knowing Gray was ineffective; nothing but futile rage. HPD arrived, likely summoned by the receptionist. They entered and lifted Gray up, cuffing her hands behind her back which gave Shaw all the more courage to stand up to her. "You will never work anywhere near an omega ever again. And if I get my way, you'll never even glimpse one outside of a movie or book for the rest of your life."

Gray railed against the restraints but had no choice but to go with two of the uniformed men, while others dealt with the orderlies, clearing them out of the room, leaving just Steve, Danny and Shaw in what was almost an eerie aftermath. Steve was keeping up a slow rocking movement, just as much for himself as for Danny. He pressed his lips against Danny's forehead and temple, the arm around him gripping at the material of his t-shirt, unwilling to let go. Danny breathed deeply then buried his eyes against Steve's shoulder while he calmed the shakes in his body. It was a trusting move to block his sight while he gathered his wits and one that Steve cherished.

As Danny then pulled his head away, Steve bracketed it with hands and looked deeply into Danny's eyes even though the omega had trouble meeting them. "You okay?" he asked, needing to hear it from Danny himself that he wasn't in pain. The omega nodded, though there was a wince as he rolled a shoulder, older injuries aggravated. Steve looked around them at the mess the room was in, but his eyes were drawn to the chair and area of the door frame that had splintered. "What the hell happened? They broke the door?"

Danny nodded as he tried to pull his pants up though it was difficult over his bad knee. Steve began helping him, eyes drawn to Danny's groin but not in a way that was for his own pleasure. He was angry at how Danny had been touched and was concerned about any damage or bleeding, but he averted his eyes quickly, concentrating on the task at hand. He helped Danny stand and got him sitting on the disheveled bed. He stood just to Danny's side, arm wrapped around his shoulders, hand carding through Danny's hair as he continued to surveil their surroundings, senses still heightened for a threat.

Shaw sat beside Danny but left breathing room between them, still anticipating his aversion to touch that wasn't from McGarrett. "Danny barricaded himself inside this morning, but after we had a chat, I thought things were okay. It's my fault, I didn't press for more reasoning behind his actions."

"What was the reason? Hey," he bent down again, kneeling between Danny's legs. "What's been going on here?"

"It's not about the traffickers if that's what you're thinking," Danny assured him but it made little difference to Steve's concern or anger. In fact, it only made it grow if these were separate incidents all targeting Danny. "I didn't want her touching me again. That backfired," he said the last on a stilted laugh.

"Again?" Steve asked, jaw tightening as Danny stayed silent, not refuting the obvious question. He turned his ire onto Shaw. " **AGAIN?!** " he all but yelled.

The doctor was in shock at the revelation. "I had no idea," she said. "She's a respected doctor, it just... no one ever suspected her capable of..."

Steve had to walk away from them for a moment, the build up of tension in him needing a release and he slammed his fist into the wall, denting the plaster as his knuckles bled. "Sorry," he apologized off-hand as he paced back to the bed. "Protective custody. You won't stop me this time; he's coming with me," he told Shaw, finger pointing harshly in her direction.

"If that's what Danny wants," she said. "I think the decision should be his. But I agree it would be best for you to be together as bond mates," she looked to Danny at the last, encouraging him.

Danny was unsure. He felt like he'd just controlled his racing heart, was attempting to put what was going on into perspective, whether or not he was still in danger. He leaned forward, elbows resting on his knees, head in his hands. "Whatever you want."

"No, Danny," Steve made it a point to get down to his seated level and once again into Danny's line of sight with a hand on his face. "I won't do anything you're opposed to, okay? This bond is strengthening and it's getting harder to keep away from you; I want to get you out of here and somewhere I can keep you safe, but the last thing I want to do is force you, especially now."

"You know it's you. I'm not going insane, right? Gray was wrong, it's not her..." Danny said, cottoning onto talk of the bond but his brain was struggling to catch up.

"It's me, it's me, Danny, there's no doubting it, not anymore," Steve nodded, reassuring him, pleased to see Danny sigh in relief. He ran his hand up and down Danny's bicep and curled the other one at his neck. "I never thought I'd want an omega but then you- never mind, now isn't the time."

"No, it is, it really is," Danny complained. "You never wanted a bond, I never wanted a bond. When I worked it out I figured we'd kill it and go back to normal-"

"Let's not rush to any decisions, it's only been a few days, let's not talk about it now," he said and was about to move on when he stopped himself and continued. "Maybe it's the bond talking but the thought of you being with someone else it- well, it makes me nauseous. And that's what'll happen if we break the bond so unless you're dead set on doing it, I say we see where it takes us."

Danny gave Steve a withering look. "So much for not talking about it," he said, and reached for Steve's forearm. "Normal's overrated. I've never had it, don't know how on Earth I'd ever get back to it," his decision echoing Steve's without the need for blatant agreement. Bond decisions could be properly made down the line, but right now both men - virtual strangers, really - seemed to have an understanding and a chemistry that they wanted to explore. Doubts and second guessing could remain distant for the time being. 

"I'll get the paperwork started so you can sign it and Mr Williams can countersign on arrival," Mindy said, meaning the license for their bond to be ratified. 

"My sister's not going to believe this," Steve said with a genuine smile of affection that could almost be described as giddy despite the current circumstances, but Danny latched onto it as a haven in the storm. He'd been through hell for days. This thing with Doctor Gray was only one of many endurances, but for the first time in years, he felt like there was something good happening in his life. It was gooey and mushy to think that way and must be bond related, but he needed it and wasn't ashamed to admit it - at least not to himself.

There was a tap at the door and two betas from the paramedics had arrived, kits in hand. They seemed polite and unassuming and doing everything within their power to remain non-threatening. They had probably been alerted to the fact two alphas had fought over bonding rights and worried Steve might still be keyed up.

He'd tamped down on a lot of his desperate need to exert his authority and protect Danny at all costs, ripping the head off anyone who dared look at them the wrong way, but he couldn't deny it still bubbled inside. He was lucky his SEAL training could be adapted to all circumstances, including those of a more personal nature.

Danny's apprehension was tangible as he looked at Steve. "I don't want anyone touching me," he said with a small shake of his head. It even made Steve let go of him, worried he'd overstepped his bounds until Danny immediately piped up. "No, you're okay."

"Alright, we'll give it some time. Doctor Shaw can you talk to the paramedics, maybe get some advice from them about what we might need to do later. Right now I'd prefer to get Danny away from the scene and to somewhere he can be more comfortable."

Shaw agreed readily, kowtowing to anything Steve demanded not just in fear of him as an alpha and cop, but because she knew there had been awful mistakes made in the ORC and the guilt would be eating at her. 

Once alone, Steve held Danny's hands in his. "You need to pack?"

"No," he answered. "Not really, I didn't exactly arrive with anything and the stuff here is all just ORC issue."

"Okay then, what do you say we get out of here?"


	7. Chapter 7

Danny watched the scenery go by, arm propped up on the door frame and hand up to protect his eyes from the bright sun. It looked like he wasn't paying attention, but he had heard every word of the speakerphone conversation with Steve's team. 

"Just take care of your boy, we've got this," the man on the other end said.

"I know you do, Lou. But I want to be made aware immediately of any threat Mannis knows about. I also want regular updates on where we are in the case, and that includes whatever Jerry finds with Toast's help."

"What do you want to do about Gray? Leave her with HPD? I figure you get two seconds alone with her in a room and you'd be the only one to walk out alive."

Danny glanced at the other man to see him reluctantly agreeing. "While you and Chin deal with Mannis, send Kono over to HPD to talk with Gray. Also double check whether you can find any ties to the traffickers. I don't expect it, but you never know. If it turns out to be a separate case, we'll leave her in lock up there for a while. Maybe once things are calmed down I won't be so inclined to shoot her in the face and we can get her prosecuted."

"We're on it," Lou said. "Take whatever time you need. We'll have Mannis singing like a bird soon enough."

"Call me if you need me," Steve told him. 

"As a last resort, sure," Lou responded, making it clear that he expected Steve to concentrate on other things. 

After hanging up, Steve kept his gaze between the road and Danny's quiet form. There was an awkwardness between them that had sprung up. They barely knew each other yet there was a possibility hanging over their heads that they'd be together forever. Add onto that a worry that they were in danger, Steve walking on eggshells because of Danny's recent abuses, Danny's newness to Hawaii, and Steve unsure how far to progress without Mr Williams' consent, meant that settling in together would be a strange thing. 

Pulling up outside his house, he turned to Danny while they took off their seat belts. "The house is pretty big, there's a small patch of beach out back. I don't see much of the neighbors but they're good people," he said, filling the silence, trying to say something useful that was also easy going.

"So this is your place, not a safe house?" Danny asked.

"Both," Steve answered. "I figure you could be here with me a very long time and you've been shuttled around too many places already. The house is comfortable, there's plenty of space and it's stocked with beer."

"Ah, well, you had me at beer. Lead on," Danny said. 

Ever the gentleman, Steve was quickly out of the truck so he could walk around to the passenger side. By the time Danny had climbed out, Steve was there to close the door for him and then lead him forward, a hand low on Danny's back as they stopped by the front door. Once inside, Steve allowed Danny a moment to get his bearings. "There's a study round to the right, downstairs bathroom is there too. The kitchen is through the back. Upstairs there's the master bedroom with an en suite, two smaller rooms, another bathroom, some storage space... there's a basement under the stairs… the garage is off to the side, I've got my dad's old car in there that I've been working on when I can..." he began running out of things to talk about and trailed off. 

Danny just nodded along, eyes roaming over the house. He'd been living in dingy, cheap apartments for so long that he wasn't used to a more spacious living arrangement. Even his family home growing up hadn't felt as large as this house, certainly not with so many kids. His eyes peered into corners, around the furniture and to any larger ornamentation around the place. Steve seemed confused by his motions, and asked him what he was looking for.

"Cameras," Danny answered, matter-of-fact. Steve seemed slightly taken aback. "We were told by the OLP when we ran always to check places out."

"I understand checking public places, but..."

"Billy and I weren't made of money. We worked low-paying jobs and rented cheap apartments. The landlords and supers could be seriously sketchy at times. It's not that they would be looking for omegas, they could just be regular pervs. We always checked where cameras or security were no matter where we went, public or not."

"Well, there's nothing here. I don't have anything beyond a regular alarm. And my service weapons. And myself," Steve told him. 

Danny shrugged, a small amount of distrust creeping in. "It's autopilot," he explained as his eyes continued to skim. Satisfied for the time being, he made his way directly into the kitchen remembering Steve's promise of beer. He headed for the fridge and grabbed two bottles as Steve followed, accepting the one Danny offered and grabbing a bottle opener for them. "This is where your dad died?" Danny asked as he leaned back on the counter.

Steve was surprised. "How would you know about that?"

"Google," Danny answered. "I looked up Five-0, looked up you. There were a bunch of newspaper articles about how the task force began. Your dad's death was mentioned. Isn't it strange to be living here after something like that?"

"Well, I grew up in this house. There's a lot of different memories here, good and bad. And I was in South Korea when it happened. I've changed a lot of stuff since then, moved a few things around. Had to rebuild part of the interior walls and staircase after the place got shot up during a case."

"A nice, family home then. Death and destruction aside," Danny shook his head but there was an element of jest in his tone.

Steve laughed. "It is, I promise you. You wanna see outside?" he asked and Danny agreed, shepherded out with Steve's guiding hand. The back garden was quite an expanse. Grass tapered off to a rough, sandy beach and the waves lapped at the shore while the trees nearby rustled in the light breeze.

There were two old chairs and a small table that he walked towards. There was a decent amount of space - Danny had never had a garden this size. As he looked back up at the property he wondered just how long it had been in the McGarrett family and how much it had cost when they bought it. Because surely by now it was worth an absolute fortune. No wonder Steve wasn't wanting to part with it - it was one hell of an investment, no matter what gruesome past it might have. 

Danny faced the water and watched the horizon. He realized that he had lost all perspective of where he was; he had no clue if he was looking toward his home or toward where his future could have been if not for a lot of fortuitous circumstances. And Steve.

The alpha stood beside him, relaxed but exuding strength. His beer bottle sat abandoned on the small table nearby and he gazed at Danny in a kind of wonder that finally drew Danny's attention back to him. "What?" Danny asked.

"You know your eyes, the way they are right now? They look the same as this view… a mix of gold and blue, the way the sun sparkles as it reflects off the water. I look out from here every day, I swim in it regularly, it's one of my favorite things, it makes me feel at home. And now I look at you and I see it, too. It can't be coincidence."

"It's normal for an omega's eyes to turn blue. You did get at least a half decent education on this rock, right?"

"Yeah, but there's a lot of different blues out there. And yours are bright like the ocean on a clear Hawaiian day," he took Danny's beer from him, placing it down and then holding both of Danny's hands in his own between them. "Yours are perfect. And that doesn't surprise me in the least."

"Okay, gotta admit, I didn't expect a Navy SEAL to be so… mushy."

Steve smiled. "I know you might not be ready for this but…" he trailed off, then decided to let his actions speak for him. He leaned closer with only a slight hesitation, allowing Danny the opportunity to pull back but he didn't. The trust emboldened Steve as he lightly pressed his lips to Danny's. As the omega still did nothing to stop him, he pressed closer, wrapped his arms around Danny's waist and felt Danny's hands come to rest on his arms as the kiss deepened.

The word 'perfect' continue to reverberate in Steve's mind. Everything about Danny felt right: his eyes, his lips, his taste, the way he fit in Steve's embrace. Their kisses were slow, languid, unrushed and as they broke apart, the quiet around them as they breathed was comfortable again.

Steve's hand cupped Danny's face, thumb rubbing lightly against his stubble. His lips brushed against Danny's temple as he hugged the other man close, both of them with heads turned to the ocean.

"Maybe we're smarter than we give ourselves credit," Steve said on a murmur. "Starting a bond like we did… our brains just needed to catch up with our hearts."

"You do know that bonding hormones are in the brain, right? They were there first."

"Whatever. You know what I mean."

"Yeah, I do."

 

*

"How on Earth could you be so stupid, Daniel?"

"Ma, it wasn't just me, technically, and I wasn't in the right frame of mind according to the shrinks, so maybe lay off me a little?"

"Your father will have a fit."

"Well, just add it onto the pile of things he's mad at me for."

"Saying all of that, we've probably spoken with Commander McGarrett more than we have our own son in twenty years."

"Ma, don't do that, don't be so passive aggressive, okay? Look, we're trying to figure things out for ourselves, I don't need you making it more difficult."

"But you've moved in with him! Your father needs to meet him, needs to sign the paperwork-"

"The Center is sorting that out for when you guys arrive. And I only moved in with him because he's worried we're still in danger from that trafficking gang. And the Center was no longer safe, okay? You want us to be somewhere safe, this was the best solution." The borrowed cell phone beeped with an incoming call. "Listen, Ma, Steve's getting a call from his office, I need to let him take this. I'll see you guys tomorrow, okay? Have a safe flight."

He hung up quickly before she could even respond. He loved his mother but there were times that she could be very trying and right now, he was just wanting to focus on himself and the turmoil surrounding him. He wasn't happy they were flying in so soon, not when Steve was still investigating and ever since everything with Doctor Gray blew up in their faces. But his mother was even more determined to get there quickly after just the sanitized version of the story Danny had given her, which didn't include the attempted rape by the good doctor. 

Steve took the offered phone and answered, leaving it on speakerphone, as Danny had while talking to his mom. "Hey, Chin, how are we doing?"

"So it turns out Mannis was getting regular payouts in cash, so this isn't the first time the traffickers had used him. The hack into the OLP account to talk to Jenna was just the latest. His phone had hacking software in it that he used while at work to get into the ORC's network. He admitted that he was hired by the traffickers to monitor Centers across the western seaboard and find out where omegas were being picked up as 'strays' and what volume of intakes there were. They wanted to narrow down the best cities to go to and find omegas of their own. And the OLP hack wasn't recent, they had been using that to find out where chatter was for them, too. This was a sleek operation."

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but Mannis doesn't seem the type to be that good with computers."

"He's not. He was given the software, someone else made it. Toast is going to see if he can find a signature in the program that might help narrow things down for us. Find the coder and find who hired him."

"How'd he get the money? He was paid in cash, right? There must have been a drop point."

"That's what we were thinking. Lou's working on getting him to give that information up. We got him to talk about his end of things but trying to get him to open up about who's in control of the gang is proving more difficult."

"How'd Kono do with Madison Gray?"

"She's not had a chance yet. The Doctor was being processed at department headquarters and they were backed up."

Steve contemplated his next move, biting his lip as he made his decision. "Okay, pull her back. I want all of you on the traffickers. I want to know how Mannis got his money and where and I want to find out who gave him his payout so we can backtrack this. Eventually this all has to lead to the head of the organization."

A few moments later and the men had hung up on each other and Steve turned to where Danny was leaning against the door frame. He dumped his phone on the kitchen table and walked over, wrapping an arm around Danny and pressing his nose into Danny's hair before kissing his head. 

He knew he'd be fully rejoining the investigation soon, he just couldn't stretch the team - not when the trafficking could lead to a massive take down. He hated to admit it, but Gray needed to be sidelined a little longer. She was most likely just a psycho who had snapped. The itch in his head to go there himself and throw a block of c4 into her cell aside, as long as they knew she was behind bars and no where near Danny, that would be good enough for now. 

Of course, keeping Danny safe was his number one priority, and that wasn't just as his witness but as his omega. He knew he needed to concentrate on their bonding and other domestic things. Danny's parents flying in the next day and getting them settled in Honolulu, making a good impression on Danny's father so that he'd approve the bond… a lesser alpha would struggle to cope with two criminal investigations and a burgeoning bond but Steve was no ordinary alpha.

He held Danny close and sighed contentedly. "So… wanna order pizza?"

*

Danny watched Steve bite into his slice with obvious disgust. "There's something wrong with you."

"It's just pineapple," Steve said, lifting his shoulders in defense and trying not to laugh at just how cute he found Danny's protestation. 

"Fruit doesn't even belong in the same air space as pizza."

Steve spoke around his next, mouthful. "What about the tomato?"

"That's different and you know it," he pulled one of his legs further underneath his body as he sat on the couch, Steve next to him but sitting at an angle so they could face each while talking, eating and half paying attention to the football game on the TV. 

"I tell you what, I tell you what," Steve swallowed and pointed at the TV. "If the Broncos get a touchdown from this play, you need to try it."

"Okay, you're on. The Chargers are gonna shut them down, wait and see."

A few minutes later and a lot of screaming at the television had Steve celebrating and Danny moaning about the stupid Chargers and disparaged both San Diego and Los Angeles, blaming them for his lost bet. 

In triumph, Steve lifted an untouched slice of ham and pineapple from the half and half pizza they'd ordered, and waved it in front of Danny's face. "No way am I letting you welch on this, open up!"

"Double or nothing?"

"This is the highlight of my day, are you kidding? Get this big ol' piece of pineapple inside your mouth," he pushed the pizza into Danny's face, forcing him to take a large bite. "Don't you dare spit that out," he warned as Danny made a show of chewing and swallowing. 

"Oh God, that was awful," he said, reaching for his bottle of beer and taking a big swig. "This island is messed up. What are you doing? That's my half!" he complained as Steve reached for a slice of the pepperoni. 

Steve shrugged. "You got my slice of Hawaiian, it's only fair I get one of yours."

"I hate you. So much."

*

After the pizza was finished and the place tidied up, they sat on the couch for longer continuing to watch the game. Danny was tucked into the corner of the couch and Steve sat making lists of things that had to be done over the next few days, domestically speaking. He'd inundated Danny with questions about groceries and clothing. He knew he needed to get Danny set up with a cell phone on Steve's plan, get keys to the house made up for him and a whole bunch of other things for which he kept lifting the notepad to add onto an already long list. 

For his part, Danny wasn't so bothered and felt Steve was rushing into domesticity, but he knew a lot of that was from the bonding hormones. Some people called it nesting when alphas got like this. He remembered the way Stella's now ex-husband had been with her when they'd initiated a bond… it felt like that was nothing compared to how Steve had acted since they'd met, slowly succumbing to the bond they were forming and now seeming so single minded.

After twenty years on the run, Danny only ever worried about having clean clothes for the next day, a couple days worth of food in the fridge and a cheap cell in case he needed it. All this other stuff? He just wasn't used to it, he didn't think it was something that had to be done right this instant.

Steve may have had initial reluctance to the bond but he was all in now, running with it at full speed even though both had agreed they should be slow and get to know each other before decisions were finalized about if they'd take it all the way. Steve was acting as if it was a done deal. Danny was still in some kind of limbo between his innate beliefs about not needing an alpha in his life, and the fact that Steve was… something different. Unexpectedly amazing. 

The alpha bent forward to the coffee table again and wrote another thing down. Danny peered over at it. "Did you seriously just write down 'surf board'?" he asked. 

"I've got mine and Mary's in the garage but I think you should have your own. We can rent for a while but why spend all that money renting when you can have your own? It works out cheaper in the long run and it's a good investment. Mamo will take care of us," he said, as if this was a completely normal conversation for two people to have a few days after meeting. 

"Well, you can take it back off the list. I won't be surfing. Or swimming. Or going anywhere near the ocean. Or the beach."

"I hate to break it to you, but you now live on a tropical island. You're literally surrounded by beach."

"Don't remind me."

"How can you hate the beach? No one hates the beach."

"I hate the beach. Okay?"

"Can you swim?"

"Yes, I can swim. If I had to, I could swim fine, I just don't like to. Not anymore. Can you please leave it alone? I'm asking nicely. Please."

"Sure," Steve answered, though Danny could tell the look on his face meant he'd be filing this away in head to pry into again later. Steve's phone rang and he picked it up, still keeping it on speaker as he had before. Seemed he figured there was no point in keeping secrets from Danny. "Yeah, Chin?"

"We've got the location of the drop. Pretty quiet neighborhood, mixture of businesses and residential buildings. Lou and Kono had been searching through footage from the area, I've been checking traffic cams from here but so far nothing from the last few days has had a decent angle to catch these guys. Looks like they did their homework."

"What about private cameras?" Danny asked, sitting forward.

"Cell phone and dash cam footage is really hard to get hold of… we'd have to identify people from the footage we have then find them. That would take a long time. And if we issued any kind of alert asking for it on the news, the bad guys get wind of what we're doing," Chin explained over the phone. 

"No, I don't mean that," Danny put in again. "You said there's residential buildings? The only cameras you'd know about from those are what the landlords put in. But a lot of residents will have their own. Sometimes people get them to keep an eye on their cars or bikes to catch thieves. You've got to do a visual search for those or knock on some doors. If you guys didn't think to check for those, I doubt the bad guys would either." he finished. 

"Steve?" Chin asked through the phone, asking for the man's opinion. 

"I think Danny's onto something," he gave Danny a look, both men remembering the conversation they'd had on arrival about Danny checking for cameras in the house. Only someone wanting to stay hidden would know all the tricks to look out for. "Get Jenna Kaye to help you on this one, she might have a few ideas, too. I have a feeling the OLP teaches the omegas a few things about hiding from cameras when they go on the run."

"Will do. You both have a good night," Chin told them before hanging up. 

Steve sat back slowly, eyes on Danny the whole time. "What?" Danny asked, tempted to ask if he had something on his face.

"That's not the first time you've been the one to come up with something that spurs this case on. You said you wanted to be a cop when you were a kid?"

"Like my uncle. Until I was told by everyone that I couldn't be one because omegas don't get to be cops. Or anything considered 'dangerous'."

Steve nodded. "Because the government wants omegas to be protected."

"Because people think we can't hack it," he said back. "And because poor alphas can't be around that many omegas or they'd be distracted by thoughts of sex all the time. Which, frankly, is insulting to both sub-genders and I never understood why alphas agreed with it."

"Not all alphas think like that, is why."

"Well, enough of them clearly do or I'd be allowed to do whatever I want. All this obligation bullshit. I have no obligation to humanity. People suck. I hate people. I hate alphas the most, I mean, why should it matter to anyone else but me where I go, what I do, how I earn money, what I wear… and no one has the right to tell me what to do, or make me live in a particular place. Or touch me!" he finished, voice high as he yelled it out while staring blankly at the TV. 

Steve slowly nodded his head, understanding exactly what was happening. Danny was lashing out because of what he'd gone through and he had every right to be angry, to be mad, and to stomp and yell. "I'm sorry for what you've been through," he finally said as Danny grabbed a cushion and hugged it to his chest. 

"Yeah," was all he said in response. 

"How much of that is directed at me?" Steve asked, needing to honestly know.

"None of it," Danny answered though it was somewhat reluctant. He sighed. "I miss Billy. Our lives weren't exactly great, but we liked what we had."

"I lost my closest friend years back. We were on the same SEAL team. I had to make a decision, he made me leave him behind and he didn't survive. His name was Freddie Hart. He was the best friend I could ever have. I still miss him."

"I'm sorry you lost him."

"He, uh, his wife Kelly, she's an omega. They have a daughter. I spent all my time dating betas… mostly one in particular, she left when things got too serious for her… Thing is, Freddie thought I was being stupid. He said Catherine and I wouldn't last. He always told me there was an omega out there for me, that the real deal would come along and I'd know it when I found it and I'd get to be as happy as him and his wife. I never believed him, but he was right about Cath."

"Billy and I sometimes got broody, y'know, around certain 'times'. We were there for each other so that we didn't hand ourselves in if we had a bad one and needed some kind of relief. We used substitutes but it's not the same," he ran a hand through his hair, a little embarrassed as he tried to talk about having to use a sex toy to get himself off when he needed. "Anyway, we had moments when we'd be convinced an alpha, one in particular, was out there waiting for us and we had to turn ourselves in or they'd not be able to find us. Like a cheesy romcom and we were stuck in the first act of it or something. I fully admit, there's a part of me that was always looking."

"Me too," Steve agreed. "I guess the question is what we do now that we've acknowledged it?"

"Now? I think we go to bed," Danny said. "I mean, go sleep. On it. Separately. You said something about spare rooms."

"Yeah, actually, my old room from when I was a kid," Steve said, belatedly realizing that might be weird for Danny to stay in, but there was no way he could put Danny in Mary's room as she'd freak about someone being in there and clearly they weren't sleeping in the master room together. "Unless you want to sleep in my current room and I'll take the spare?"

"No, I'm not turfing you out of your own bed. You've done enough for me as it is," he stood and Steve stood as well, trying to be a gentleman, but Danny stopped him from speaking before he started. "You already told me, spare toothbrush and towels are in the bathroom upstairs. Anything else can wait until morning. Good night."

"Good night," Steve told him, letting him go up on his own while he tidied further and began locking up.

*

It was useless. Not even covering his head with the pillow was working. The waves just kept crashing over and over and his mind was locked into the rhythm and couldn't shut down. If he had to live here the rest of his life they were either going to have to move inland or he'd have to start taking sleeping pills. 

Because it was the waves and _**only**_ the waves that kept him from sleeping. 

He got up and decided to leave his clothes off and wander downstairs in just his boxers. He made his way into the kitchen and poured himself a drink of water before going to the couch and turning the TV on. He put the volume on just one bar above mute and skipped around the channels aimlessly as he pulled the comforter from the back of the couch and around himself. 

Then the light came on somewhere upstairs and a few moments later, Steve appeared in sweat pants and a t-shirt and quietly made his way down. "Hey," he said in hushed tone. "Everything okay?"

"Yeah, sorry, I just couldn't sleep. Thought maybe some infomercials would help," he used the remote to point at the screen. 

"The blender I have is perfectly fine," Steve said as his eyes caught what Danny was watching. In his tired state he shuffled to the couch and flopped down on it beside Danny, throwing an arm around the back. 

"I'm not actually planning on buying it. I just needed something to drown out the waves. They're so loud."

"Most people find that soothing."

"It's water torture," Danny told him and Steve huffed a laugh and squeezed Danny's shoulder now that his hand had slipped to be more around Danny than across the back of the chair. "I didn't mean to wake you."

"You didn't. I haven't been sleeping much recently either." He didn't say why, if it was the case or because of Gray. But both men knew there was an element of the bond that wouldn't let them rest fully until it was consummated and had to be partly to blame for why they couldn't drift off.

Danny sunk down further into the couch, rested his head on Steve's shoulder and pulled the comforter so it was across both of them. "I bet your blender didn't come with a bonus 'chop wizard' like this one does. And all for three easy payments."

"No, it did not," Steve answered as they sat close together, eyes glued to the TV screen in the darkness of the room, Steve's hand idly rubbing up and down Danny's arm.


	8. Chapter 8

Danny woke with a sore back and a moment of worry about where he was. For the last few days, every time he woke it was in a different place, with different sounds and smells and beds underneath him. Only this morning it wasn't a bed but a couch. 

He was lying on his back with his legs hanging off the side and with a heavy weight on his stomach. It turned out that both he and Steve had fallen across the sofa sometime in the night and Steve was slumped on top of him, head on Danny and his body in an 'L' shape around him. 

Danny lightly ran a hand through Steve's hair and it made the other man blink awake, snuffling against Danny's chest hair, a hand squeezing at his bare hip. "Morning," Danny said as he let his hand linger at Steve's hairline. 

Steve pressed a kiss to Danny's abs and breathed in deeply before answering with a grunt and a similarly mumbled 'good morning' before what sounded like a contented purr.

The TV was still on a loop advertising various products; Danny reached out for the remote and shut it off. He stretched, making his muscles ripple as he did so. Steve took it as opportunity to get himself onto all fours and hover above Danny, legs still twined with the omega's, hands on either side of his shoulders as he looked down. He took the opportunity to touch Danny's cheek, and he tilted his head to allow the sunlight to filter against Danny's face, illuminating his eyes and Steve smiled as he saw the changes continuing to take hold. 

"How do they look?" Danny asked. Still half asleep and giving in to his baser instincts, Steve looked pleased so Danny could only assume the blue was more pronounced. 

"Gorgeous," Steve answered before swooping down, taking Danny's lips in a much harder kiss than the day before. This one was bolder, determined and had an animalistic longing that Danny's hind brain was keen to respond to in kind. 

Angles shifted, noses bumped as the kisses grew in ferocity. Tongues tangled and Steve pressed Danny down into into the cushions, a hand trailing over Danny's thigh. He didn't seem to need air, his whole concentration was on kissing Danny senseless with a refusal to let go of his lips until Danny pulled away for a desperate breath. With Danny's head turned to the side, Steve trailed nips and small bites down into his neck. 

It was then Danny noticed how Steve kept himself above him; knees high, keeping his groin poised above and never pushing fully down against Danny. He knew it meant Steve was holding himself back and it was clear that was because he worried about the impact it would have on Danny after what had happened with Doctor Gray. He was doing everything he could to be unlike her, prove that he wasn't an entitled alpha who was going to take what he wanted, Danny's opinions be damned. 

It was incredibly sweet as a gesture but frustrating. Danny had nerves that were quashed down, but those didn't come from an expectation of ill treatment - they were because he was, technically, a virgin. 

Yes, he'd gone to a certain point with Rachel before he'd fled. Yes, he'd had the odd foray into a nightclub where he'd hooked up with a willing beta but only for brief dance floor make out sessions (and only in his early twenties, before he wised up about the dangers involved in doing that). And yes, he had used sex toys.

He wasn't worried about have sex, wasn't worried about having anything up there and he knew what it was to have someone look at his body, so it wasn't body image related, not really. It was just… what if he was no good? Steve had been around the block, he'd dated, he knew what he was doing. 

And in all honesty? Danny didn't. He was a good actor and he had a lot of confidence, but it was still a new thing to him. 

Steve raised his head from where he had his tongue flicking lightly against one of Danny's nipples. "I lost you," he said.

"No, you didn't-"

Steve pushed himself up and back to sit in the corner, eyes still coveting Danny's body but he was tamping down on it. "It's too soon. I completely understand."

"It's not about that," Danny said, knowing he meant about Gray. "That's not affecting me."

"But we still need to stop," Steve told him. "Your father hasn't signed off on anything, we haven't had any papers notarized, we can't be doing any of this until things are dealt with through the proper channels."

Danny lay back, bringing both hands to his face and growling with frustration into them. Another aspect that alphas and betas had easy was they didn't need to seek out government approval for a bond like omegas did… unless it was **with** an omega, obviously. Sometimes things could be skipped, omegas would bond while waiting on the processing of the papers, but they both knew the dangers in overlooking the paperwork when it came to Danny's particular status. 

Steve ran his hands over Danny's legs. "It won't take long, we can have everything in place in the next day or two. That gives you an actual chance to settle in first." Being in just his boxer shorts meant Steve had a lot of skin on view to look at, and he seemed to whine as he finished talking, eyes glued to the way Danny's chest rose and fall. "I'm going to go… jerk off in the shower. Then I'll get us some breakfast."

"I should do that, too," Danny said, sitting up better. 

"Jerk off in the shower?"

"I just meant I needed to shower, full stop. But, maybe," he answered honestly, feeling just a faint blush of embarrassment. 

Steve bit his lip. He wanted to wash together, he wanted to touch Danny and make him come, he wanted Danny to suck him off or bend over for him to fuck, but he was invested in being a gentleman now and had to hold out. But the thought of Danny standing under the stream of water with a finger inside himself, wet and moaning? That was going to help get him off quicker in his own shower.

"Well, there's plenty of hot water," Steve said, feeling like an idiot immediately, blanking on any other response, but Danny just gave a short laugh as he made his way upstairs ahead of Steve… who had a damn good view of Danny's boxer shorts covered ass.

*

By the time Danny had stepped out of the shower and was scrubbing the towel over his hair, he had a dilemma - he wasn't sure what to wear. 

They'd left the ORC with just the clothes he had on his back, and though Steve had put that kind of thing on his insanely long list, there wasn't anything materializing from that yet. So he could put on the sweats and t-shirt from the Center but he had kicked them into the corner and didn't particularly want to wear them again. 

He tied the towel around his waist, fixed himself up by slicking back his hair and brushing his teeth and then peered out of the bathroom. 

There were sounds from downstairs of pots and pans and cupboards so Steve had finished his shower, dressed and already begun fixing things to eat. And Danny thought he'd been reasonably fast himself… he must be wrong. 

He padded out onto the landing, head craning over the banister but he figured Steve wouldn't mind him finding what he could. He didn't linger; he didn't want to snoop. He grabbed a pair of shorts and a tee from what looked like a freshly laundered pile of clothing that had yet to be put away and figured that would make do. His hand hovered over a pair of boxers but he decided that wearing the alpha's underwear could be a step too far this early in their relationship. 

He pulled the clothing on and went back to the bathroom long enough to blow dry his hair, and he found some products that were probably Mary's but would work in the short term for him to tame what could be an unruly mop of blond if he didn't do something about it. 

Happy enough, he wandered downstairs. Steve heard him coming and was still paying attention to the pancakes he was making when he greeted him. "Hey stranger. You took your time."

"Had to find something to wear. Hope you don't mind?" he asked as he leaned on the door frame. 

Steve's eyes darted to him off-hand then immediately returned to him, gawping at the sight in front of him. Danny looked down at himself. It was a pair of random board shorts, but he just noticed the tee and the writing on it that had something to do with the Navy. "It's fine," Steve said, voice pitching high.

"I'm sorry, I didn't realize what I'd grabbed. I can change, I can find what I had on before-"

"No, of course not, you need fresh clothes. Can't have you walking around naked," he said as he finished making another pancake and added it to the impressive pile. "Tempting, of course. I just… you look good." He adjusted his pants and Danny realized what had flustered Steve. 

"Oh," he just said. "Is the t-shirt too tight on me?" He'd wondered that himself as he'd pulled it on, he did seem slightly broader than Steve over the shoulders. He didn't want to stretch it out.

Steve turned the hob off, moving the pan out of the way and he took a second as he leaned on the counter with both hands and took a deep breath. Whatever control he had wasn't complete successful. He pushed to stand then strode over the few steps to Danny and got as close as he could, backing Danny up to the wall. "You're in my clothes," was all he said and ducked his head into Danny's neck and inhaled deep and long. "You're in my house, using my soap and shampoo, bed, couch, kitchen…" he rubbed his nose to Danny's, deciding on the angle before nipping at Danny's lips. "Everything's _**mine**_ …" he cut off a growl, flexed his muscles and licked up Danny's neck to his ear before biting the earlobe. 

Danny swallowed. The old Danny would be outraged, would push Steve away, would rail against having an alpha, and would run. 

But the new Danny felt a weakness in his knees, trusted Steve through all his overtures, felt the heat radiating between them and knew it was shared. He was fine with being Steve's, just as much as Steve would belong to him in return. It wasn't about being a possession, of being owned, like Gray had wanted with him. It was about respect and lust and protection and desire. It was everything and it flooded his brain with _yes, now, want, need_. The bond spoke suggestively to him, encouraging both of them.

He twisted a hand into Steve's t-shirt and pulled him impossibly closer. "Come here," he said with quiet determination, tangling his other hand at the back of Steve's head so he could grip into the strands of hair as their lips met again in a fierce, passionate kiss that sung through their bond, promising them the perfection they craved.

Steve dug his arms between Danny and the wall, wrapping him up before allowing those hands to sink lower, both skimming across the waistline of the board shorts then under, each palm gripping into the flesh of Danny's ass. There was no underwear to slow him down, he could push the shorts out of the way, turn Danny to the wall and bite and suck those pert cheeks before pressing a finger into the slick heat of his body.

The temptation was powerful, but he pulled his hands out and hugged them around Danny's waist again, keeping him close but slowly settling their kisses out of the realm of desperate need and towards something more mellow. Danny's entire being was surrounded by Steve and his possessions and Steve's brain told him to fuck him and complete the bond but he remembered they had good reason to wait. He needed to slow and stop.

If he hadn't jerked off fifteen minutes ago, it might have been another story. 

Danny moaned, unhappy with the change of pace, and Steve smiled into their light kiss before he licked along Danny lower lip. "We've got plenty of time."

"You started it," Danny accused him. 

"And I'm finishing it. We need to wait," he said, finally pulling back, though his hands on Danny's hips remained a fraction longer. "I made pancakes."

"You got blueberry syrup?" Danny asked as he righted himself.

"Why on Earth would I have that? Who puts blueberry syrup on pancakes?!"

"Uh…? I do. It's perfectly normal."

"As normal as pineapple on pizza?" Steve asked, sensing that he was going to enjoy stoking the flames. 

"Do not get me started," Danny told him, a finger up to wave in his face. "Do I have to teach you everything? How backwards is this Island??"

*

A knock on the door interrupted them as they finished putting away the dishes. Danny offered to go see who was there but Steve told him to stay back, protective instincts kicking in.

"Hey," Steve said as he opened it, relaxing at the sight of the woman standing there brandishing a few different bags. 

"Took a guess at sizing for some of it, used what Danny wrote down for the rest. Got some of the other stuff on your list, too. And somewhere in here is a new phone," she said as she dumped the heavy bags onto the couch. "Hi, I'm Kono," she said as she spotted Danny.

He came forward to shake her hand. "Danny Wats- sorry, Williams. Gotta get used to using my own last name again," he answered. As much as he'd been around people using his real name for the last few days, it was hard to shake twenty years of introducing himself as someone else. The small glance he shot Steve made him swallow, as it suddenly hit him that he might be changing his name again anyway. But that was a decision for later.

"Nice to finally meet you. Steve's been hesitant to introduce us all, keeping you to himself," she smirked. 

"You've got work to do," Steve told her off. "Speaking of, where are we on the case?"

"Actually, Danny's hunch proved right," she said with a smile for him. "A family in a ground floor apartment were using an old nanny cam in a stuffed bear that was sitting in their window to keep watch on their car. They had the perfect angle and luckily for us hadn't wiped the footage yet. A day later and it would have overwritten. Jerry and Chin are going through it now, we expect to find out who did the drop shortly. I'm just waiting on the call then Lou and I will make the arrest."

"Good work," Steve said. "And you, Danny," he said, hand slapping to the top of Danny's back, massaging against his shoulder then slithering down his spine until it rested on his lower back. 

"So you arrest him and hope he'll flip on whoever is higher up? Because there's no way the guy on the top is doing something as lowly as dropping money off," Danny asked.

"Exactly right," Kono said. "We're working up the food chain bit by bit. We're getting closer."

"Maybe I should come in, make the arrest and talk with the guy," Steve suggested, itching to get into the field and feeling the need to punch something. He had a lot of pent up sexual frustration from the bond but mostly he was becoming more protective, and he wanted to gut everyone who had even considered looking at Danny as if he could be sold for profit.

"We've got it covered, boss. And I thought you wanted to keep Danny hidden away in this 'protective custody' thing. Don't you have his parents flying in today?"

"Yeah, but that's not until later. We've got time to try and finish this case before then," Steve said. "Danny can come to the Palace."

"Sounds like fun," Danny said. "But I would like to get changed before we go," he pointed at the bags. "Thanks for all of this. I had no idea Steve had you running errands for him."

"He emailed the list this morning. It's no big deal," she said. 

"Actually it is," Danny stopped her. "None of you need to go to so much trouble for me. It's very much appreciated."

"Aww, no problem brah. You're ohana now."

"I don't know what that means but I assume it's something good."

"Just keep the t-shirt on," Steve told him, though it was partly a question. Danny studied the other man for a moment. His alpha possessiveness was shining through. Danny recognized it from the videos they'd watched in biology class growing up - alphas who felt the need to point out to one and all that they were large and in charge, that they were bonding so hands off. Danny always thought it was stupid and alphas were clearly dumb cavemen. He had questioned why anyone would allow themselves to be the subject of that kind of domination.

Truth be told, if the flutter in Danny's stomach said anything, it was that he kind of liked it after all. "Okay," he answered, and quirked a smile at the way Steve preened.

*

No longer going commando and having changed into dark blue jeans to match his borrowed t-shirt, Danny was now a lot more comfortable. Kono had done a good job in the shopping she'd done for him, apparently with the help of her husband who Danny was finding out more about as he sat in her office. 

There was a whole complicated history between her and Adam and Danny was sure they'd only scratched the surface of that story in what she'd said so far. But she was clearly happy with the beta and that was important. 

Danny already knew the basics of the team from his own perfunctory research online; the four alphas who worked the toughest cases in Hawaii. He knew Chin and Kono were cousins, that Lou was a more recent transplant from Chicago and Steve as leader was a well-trained super soldier made of solid steel. Or so the plaudits from his SEAL career would have everyone assume. And the propaganda from the governor's office talked about Steve's exploits positively to garner support for the team's methods. 

He couldn't argue that they got results; it sounded like they'd saved a lot of people's lives.

But he found it difficult to reconcile the Steve that the public could read about with the one he'd met. To him, Steve was a lot softer.

Earlier, with the help of the tech wizards that five-0 had on hand, the footage from the nanny cam had been cleaned up and the team recognized the man doing the drop as Koa Bankfoot, who'd they'd explained to Danny was the Head of Security at DS Oil - the firm they already believed were tied to the trafficking ring. 

Steve had felt vindicated, and immediately grabbed Chin to go arrest the son of a bitch, after only a quick pause to peck a kiss to Danny's cheek and tell him to wait at the office with Kono. Since then, the two had been talking though Danny had wondered if he was keeping Kono from her work. Which made him realize just how little he had to do himself. 

He sighed, twirling the new phone he'd been given against the arm of the chair.

She looked up at him again. "I don't believe in coincidence," she said. "I think you and Steve were meant to be together. _Pilialoha_."

"Yeah? Is that some kind of island mumbo jumbo?"

"Think of it like fate. Two people who were meant to meet and fall in love. The way you've bonded just proves it. Just…" she clicked her fingers. "You both knew."

"I'm not a spiritual person," Danny said. "The only thing I've ever cared about is having my own choices. My life won't be dictated to by any person or any God."

"I agree," she said. "But it's still nice to know there's a special person for you to share it all with, right?"

He couldn't argue with her on that. As much as he and Billy had been close friends there was still something about what they shared that was on a surface level even after so long. And in only a handful of days, he felt a deep connection with Steve that went beyond anything he'd felt before. It scared him that it was so fast, but he didn't doubt any of it. "You think Steve really wants this?"

"I do," she said. "I've never seen him this happy."

"You're kidding me."

"I'm not," she laughed. "Bringing down a human trafficking ring, putting the screws into that psycho doctor and all while prepping to meet your parents and solidify a forever and always bond with you? He's having the time of his life."

Danny raised his eyebrows as he nodded, considering her words. "You know I'm not fond of this island. It's bright and there's sand everywhere and people say things I don't understand. And it's no fun getting here locked in a container or being looked at like an experiment for doctors to play with, but I'll admit, since Steve took me to his home instead I've felt… not unhappy."

"Hawaii has a way of putting a smile on people's faces."

"Who said anything about Hawaii?"

She ducked her head as she smiled, letting him have that one before looking at him again. "So what do you think will happen once the bond is complete and you settle into life with Steve?"

"I dunno. Haven't thought that far ahead," he paused. "You think he'll expect me to take his last name?"

"It's traditional. More so for alphas and omegas anyway."

"Did Adam change his?"

She shook her head. "He was tempted, for many reasons, to shake the Noshimuri last name, but he decided to keep it. I left the decision to him. He's a beta after all, so there wasn't the expectation there. I know what we've got is strong, I didn't need him to do that. The rings are enough for me."

"Daniel McGarrett. Sounds strange."

"Is it really as strange as Daniel 'Watson'?"

"Maybe that's the point. I've been living under an assumed name for so long, I'd like to go back to what I was before, the real me."

"If you really want to know what I think, Steve won't push for it. He'll want it, but he will listen to you about it. And if you decide to keep your own name, he'll just find other ways to make things clear."

A knock on the glass of the door halted their conversation then Grover ducked his head inside. "They're back with the suspect. Just dumped him in rendition."

"Danny, why don't you stay here and just let us know if you need anything," Kono said as she stood. 

"Whoa, hold on a second. I want to see this, too," he answered her. 

"It's not a good idea. You're a civilian, you shouldn't have this kind of access. And what happens in that room can be pretty tough to watch."

"First off, I'm a witness and already tied to this case. Second, I can handle a hell of a lot."

"True," she said and contemplated it for a moment. "Alright, you can watch."

*  
Bankfoot sat with his hands cuffed behind his back on the lone chair in the room. Facing him were Chin and Steve, standing next to each other, both looking impassive, biceps on show, standing to their full height with dark, serious eyes and tight jawlines.

"We know you paid Mannis. We've got you on camera making the money drop, so there's really no point in denying anything," Steve told the bound man as he continued questioning him. 

"I don't believe you."

"Why, because there were no camera pointing in the right direction? You missed one," Chin told him. "This is when you tell us who is running the show, because we know it's not you."

"I think I'm insulted," Bankfoot told them then sighed. "So maybe I get asked to do a delivery. Some guy gave me twenty bucks to go over and put the bag down," he shrugged. 

"We've never heard that one before," Chin rolled his eyes and Steve flexed his fingers so as not to keep them in a tight fist.

"I've got a respectable job that pays plenty. I don't need to do anything criminal to subsidize my bank account."

"Then why take twenty dollars from a stranger to make a delivery for him?" Chin asked, catching him out. 

"You were a Ranger," Steve said.

"That's right," Bankfoot looked Steve up and down. "In a fair fight I'd blow your sissy SEAL ass out of the water."

"You think so?" Steve asked as he bent, hands on his knees and kept his head at Bankfoot's level. He wasn't rising to the bait but he was feeling the sting of the comments. "You're messing with the wrong SEAL. You ever think about the lives these omegas deserve to lead? They're not playthings for your rich buddies to do with as they please. To beat, to abuse, _to rape_. I'm taking down everyone who sold them. And everyone who bought them."

Bankfoot was sarcastically impressed. "You think you can do all that? That you can find **everybody** involved?"

"I know I can. I'm very motivated."

Bankfoot looked up at him, tilted his head and his eyes laughed. "I get it. Those omegas you rescued at the port… you bagged one of the little whores for yourself, huh? Someone, somewhere is gonna be pissed that you're not paying the finders fee."

In the next instant, there was a yell of rage, a kick, and Bankfoot's chair was knocked over, the man hissing in pain as his bound hands and head banged onto the floor.

*

Kono flicked the screen off. 

"Hey! Why'd you do that?" Danny asked as the three of them now had blank screens in front of them displaying a rotating Five-0 logo. 

"You don't need to see what happens next," Kono told him.

"Don't treat me like a child-" he began to warn.

"I'm not. I'm treating you like a member of the public who is not a cop and not a member of the team. I'm sorry, Danny, but frankly, no one needs to see what Steve and Chin do in there next. _**No one**_."

"What ARE they going to do? They can't force a confession, it'll never hold up in court!"

Lou rested an arm around Danny's shoulders. "Look, it's perfectly okay. Five-0 have immunity and means. If it's important, we get to skip a few of the legal steps in order to save lives and bring down the bad guys," he told him. "If a couple of scumbags get a bloody nose along the way, then it's a small price to pay and frankly, they deserve it. Bankfoot might take a little longer to wear down but going by what he's said in there so far, the man is guilty as all hell."

*

Danny was pacing while the other two had calmly gone back to their offices to work, like this was something completely normal. Was it? Is this what Five-0 did to get their impressive record? 

He told himself these were criminals and Lou was right- if them getting a beating helped save countless of innocent people then it should be worth it. And having been through the kinds of things he had in the last few weeks, would he condone someone being beaten to stop it? Well... hell yes he would. Maybe not for his benefit alone, but for others, and for Billy's life... it would have been worth it. So really, he couldn't discount that when he considered the idea of 'police brutality'. Which he was torn about because having been on the side of repression and that fear of someone in authority going too far... there must be instances where the wrong person had been hurt. 

Steve and Chin came through the door, causing Danny to look up expectantly. Steve was matted in sweat and the scabs on his knuckles from his fight at the ORC had reopened and were oozing fresh blood. Danny was concerned but he stayed back, for now. 

"Here's what we've got," Steve said as the others joined them by the computer table. "He gave up Curtis Lyons. From what we gather so far, he's the likely mastermind behind this."

"Jerry can verify," Chin began. "But according to Bankfoot, Lyons got the idea for the trade when a Colombian official once made it clear that in order for them to strike a multi million pound Gas and Oil deal, he needed something in return - an omega. Lyons worked out a way to do that and the deal was successful. He found it so easy, he figured there were ways to make even more money on the side by financing an operation. He hooked up with Wyatt Turner from there."

Danny raised a hand to get their attention. "Is the word of a guy you pummeled for information enough to go arrest him? Immunity and means aside, it'll never hold up in court. Lyons will be able to afford the best attorneys in the country."

"Danny's got a point, boss," Kono said. "As much as I'd love to perp walk this bastard, we've got nothing on him."

" **'Yet'** , nothing on him **yet** ," Steve said, unhappy at needing to wait, but understanding why he had to. "First, have Jerry look into Bankfoot's claims about Lyons' past. If that's true, we can expect the rest to be. Lou, Chin, track his whereabouts, see if we can put him in the same place as Turner at some point or any communications between the two of them. Kono, track the money Mannis was paid with and see if we can trace the serial numbers back to Lyons withdrawing it. And if all else fails, we'll get eyes on him and wait for him to do something stupid. We know it's him. Let's prove it."

The others took Steve's final words as dismissal and went to research what they could. Steve leaned on the table, frustrated at the slow speed of the investigation, but he knew he wanted this air tight - he wanted Lyons and every member of the crew to go to Halawa for life. 

Danny approached him and placed a hand on his back before speaking quietly, as if trying not to spook a wild animal. "You're hurt. We should take care of that."

"It's fine," Steve said.

"You got a first aid kit in your office or something?" Danny asked then before Steve could protest, badgered him into walking to his office. "Sit down. Where's the kit?"

"Bottom desk drawer," Steve told him and watched as Danny pulled it out, laying it on the desk and opening it to find what he needed. Steve smiled at the sight, feeling good just to have someone care.

Danny pulled the guest seat by the desk closer so that he could sit in front of Steve more comfortably. He reached for Steve's hand, holding it in one of his own while the other used a wipe to clean the drying blood and grime from the wounds.

Steve hissed a little at the contact but bore the niggling pain and watched Danny's actions, his stomach fluttering like it always did when in Danny's presence. It almost made him miss what Danny was saying to him. 

"So how did you get him to talk?" 

Steve cleared his throat. "I did what I had to."

"He's ex-military. He's tough. And he goaded you into it," Danny said. "Kono had the feed playing up here for some of it," Danny explained, answering Steve's questioning look.

"Different criminals respond to different kinds of force. Some you just need to threaten, others need more of a push. Personally my favorite was the shark cage."

"Shark cage?"

"It was a couple of years back. In order to get information, we took a guy out into the ocean, dumped him in a shark cage and left him there. Don't worry, we went back for him. By then he was willing to talk."

"Are you insane?" Danny asked, attitude being riled up yet his ministrations as he cared for Steve's wound was still gentle. 

"It worked!" Steve insisted. "So does hanging someone off a roof, or pushing them off a cliff, or-"

"You pushed someone off a CLIFF?!"

"Just a little one."

Danny sat back. "You need a keeper. You shouldn't be allowed out in public."

"You signing up for the job?" Steve asked, flirtatious as he flexed his hand and pushed down against the bandage Danny had applied to the knuckle that was still bleeding.

"Seriously though," Danny sat forward again. "What did you do to Bankfoot?"

"I did enough," Steve got to his feet, pausing to press a kiss to Danny's forehead as he did so. "He and his boss are responsible for a lot of suffering. You know that first hand. I'm not letting them get away with it."

"Okay." Danny nodded, standing to face Steve, pushing the chair back out of the way. "I'm just worried that you might go too far. And if you do, it'll be my fault. We're bonding and you're feeling the need to avenge me."

Steve reached for Danny's cheek, letting his hand slide down against his neck. "The shark cage, the roof… blowing up a pawn shop? As much as I love you, and as much as I really do want to get these guys for you, this is perfectly normal for me."

"… you blew up a shop?!"

Steve kissed Danny's stunned lips. "Relax, Danny. I know what I'm doing." He pulled him in close, and took a big breath, making Danny follow suit to calm down. 

"You're crazy," Danny mumbled into Steve's shoulder. "If I change my name to yours, people are going to think I'm crazy, too."

Steve pulled back. "You've been thinking about that?" he slid his hand through Danny's hair. "There's a lot we have to talk about when it comes to the bond. That's just one small part of it, and an odd one to fixate on."

"It popped into my head this morning and now it's kind of all I've been thinking about."

"Do you want to take my name?"

"I like the one I have," he answered with a non-answer. 

"We'll talk about it later,' Steve said. "Right now I want to see if the team have more for us so we can go arrest this son of a bitch."

*

"Jerry confirmed the story," Chin threw up a picture of a South American man with what looked like a shy young lady on his arm. Danny didn't think she looked happy. "There's nothing to say conclusively that Bankfoot's right that Lyons got this guy the omega he wanted, but the timing fits."

"She's not happy. And she's not just shy in front of the cameras. See that slightly yellow tinge to the skin around her eyes?" Danny asked. "It's the effects of Nexus - the bonding drug. She's been dosed with it, probably heavily if she's still like that after the bond is complete."

Steve looked to Danny in sympathy then back to the screens as Chin continued. "Lyons has struck deals from Asia to South America. Coincidentally, that's the areas we're thinking the omegas have been sold to."

"That's circumstantial. We need to tie him directly to Turner, but our main problem is that he keeps himself at a distance," Lou said. "He's clever."

"Not clever enough if we've got this close to working it out," Steve said, determination still evident.

"Us finding Danny and the others was a fluke. Really, if they hadn't taken Danny, we'd still be in the dark over all this. What they did was underestimate omegas," Kono pointed out. 

"Which means they're scrambling just as much as we are right now," Chin agreed. "The money drop was well thought out but just sloppy enough for us to find that camera. Thanks to Danny, anyway," he hastened to point out at the end.

"And Mannis talking to Jenna left a trail," Lou continued the round robin conversation. "There's little things all over the place that they've not covered up entirely. Now that we've got Bankfoot, Lyons must be peeing himself. I'm surprised he isn't heading to the airport right now."

"That would be the biggest giveaway of the lot," Steve sighed. "And he knows we'd be watching all possible escape routes. If he wants to run, he'd need to be more creative."

"Maybe we should ask Danny," Lou said. "He's been the biggest help we've had on this case so far and he's an expert in running."

They all turned to look at the omega, who had his arms crossed.. "My situation was a lot different, you can't compare it. But if you're asking me for my opinion on this schmuck, I think the guy is too smug to think he's ever going to jail no matter what you have on him. He's clever, he's devious, he's rich. And not for nothing, he's an alpha. The superiority complex is in the DNA. No offense."

"None taken," Lou said. "Of course, in some cases, certain alphas **are** superior," he smiled, making Danny snort a laugh.

"You wanna catch him quickly? Entrapment," Danny said.

Steve caught on quicker than the rest of them. "No way."

"You haven't heard me out," Danny tried to reason with him.

"You are not offering yourself up as bait. I refuse," Steve said as the others watched the two verbally spar like it was a tennis match. 

"Oh, you refuse? Because you get to decide what I do?"

"In this case, yes! And don't throw anything about our bond at me, this is because I'm the leader of Five-0 and I deem it far too dangerous for you, an untrained civilian, to offer yourself up like that!"

"I trust you to protect me. And I thought these things were fine. I'll sign a waiver."

"It will be fine. Because you won't be doing it. End of discussion," Steve put his hands on his hips while Danny bit the inside of his lip to stop himself responding. "Using a UC might work," Steve finally admitted grudgingly and Danny moved closer, squeezing his forearm in thanks for the compromise.

"But who do we use? We've run into this problem before. If Lyons had Mannis working for him from the ORC, he could just as easily have a mole in HPD who could identify anyone going under for a sting operation."

Steve contemplated it for a moment, hand running up and down Danny's spine as they stood next to each other. "I think I know someone who can help find us an omega, or at least, someone with training who _looks_ like an omega that we can use instead. I'll make the call," he retreated to his office. 

"I guess we keep working other angles until he's done," Chin said as the others agreed and broke away to their offices. 

Kono paused for a moment. "You need anything Danny?"

"No, I'm… I'm just going to run to the bathroom."

"Just down the hall," she pointed him in the right direction.

*

"Okay," Steve said as he exited his office and motioned for the others to rejoin him. Once all were at least within hearing distance, he started. "Joe knows of someone who should be able to help us out. She's a beta with training to act like an omega and she's based in LA with NCIS so no one here should know her. He thinks he'll be able to get her on the first flight out and we can have her undercover for us by tomorrow."

"We're sure Lyons isn't going to bolt?" Lou asked.

"I've got HPD alerted, they're watching him. And we can do the same," Chin suggested. "Kono and I can stake him out tonight and Jerry can keep tabs on his electronic footprint. Maybe rope Toast into coming back in to help out again."

"Sorry we won't get this wrapped up before you meet the parents," Kono told Steve, slapping a hand on his back. "Maybe it's best you and Danny just deal with family stuff and the rest of us can do this with Commander White."

Steve looked around. "Where is Danny?"

"He went to the bathroom," Kono said, then followed suit, looking around her. "But that was a while ago."

"How long is a while?" Steve asked.

"Twenty minutes? He should be back by now."

Steve ran, the others in tow, as they made their way to the toilets and checked every cubicle to find them all empty. "Son of a bitch," he swore, beginning to pace, one hand on his forehead as he tried to think.

"He can't have gone far," Chin reasoned. "He's on foot, right? Wherever it is he's going."

"He's going after Lyons," Steve realized. "He's got the cell phone Kono brought him this morning," he dug into his pocket again for his own phone so he could try calling, hoping to convince Danny that going off by himself was a stupid idea for a million reasons. He found the phone but dug further into his pockets. "My keys. For the truck. They're missing." He fumbled again.

"He picked your pocket?" Lou asked. "If this wasn't so serious I'd be laughing at you right about now."

Steve pressed his phone to his ear but it was going to voice mail. "Son of a bitch."


	9. Chapter 9

Danny drummed his fingers against the steering wheel as he sat watching the revolving door entrance to the DS Oil headquarters. He was surprised that no black and whites had stopped him on the drive over, but he must have had enough time before Five-0 realized he was missing.

Of course, that wouldn't last long. They weren't stupid and they'd piece it together.  And Steve would notice his keys were missing.

Danny had learned a lot of underhanded tricks over the years while living in the ass ends of towns - pick-pocketing certain items was just one of those things. He'd never steal, never do anything criminal, but they were always useful in a pinch. 

And though he did feel a little bit of guilt for stealing - **borrowing** \- Steve's truck, the butterflies that pooled low in his belly were because he had no idea if he was doing the right thing. Five-0 were capable and weren't considered elite because of their looks. Bringing in whoever this undercover beta was might be the best way to go. But Danny's gut had instantly told him that was the wrong move, they shouldn't wait, and he'd acted before giving it too much thought. He'd already had it in his head that he'd be more involved so he'd taken matters into his own hands. He hated relying on others to solve his problems and in his mind, this **was** his problem. Of course, he also hated that he'd lied to them in order to slip out from the Palace.

Anger was still a key factor. He knew he could be a hothead, which was more unusual for omegas (at least, out with specific 'times of the month') and he still ached for revenge for Billy's death and for the situations Danny and the omega kids had been put through. Five-0 thought Lyons was the head of the dragon and Danny wanted to be the one to cut it off. It seemed fitting the head of the trafficking ring should be taken down by an omega. 

But this was still stupid. What did he really think would happen? Leaving Five-0's headquarters determined to confront the guy was one thing but did he expect him to cave to Danny's withering stare? How could he possible scare a guy who thought omegas beneath him? And hell, Danny wasn't likely to get anywhere near the guy even if he strolled into the building full of confidence and demanding face time, he'd be fobbed off by a receptionist and escorted out by security before he got ten feet in the direction of the man's office. Danny might be treated with kid gloves due to his sub-gender but that still wouldn't get him anywhere and there was no advantage to his status.

He sighed. He had no idea what he was doing. And any minute he'd be stopped by a cop or Steve would arrive having chased after him, likely mad as hell. He could be damaging their relationship by being here.

He should go back. He should let Five-0 do their thing.

Just as he was about to turn the key in the ignition, his eyes were drawn again to the building and the sight of a man, briefcase in hand, striding out with a confident alpha swagger. Danny narrowed his eyes, recognizing the man from the DMV photo that had been a fixture on the big screen of the Five-0 offices. It was like fate had dropped this opportunity in his lap. 

He slapped a hand against the steering wheel in frustration. He couldn't pass this up. 

He jumped out of the truck, thumbing the controls of his phone before placing it back in his pocket as he walked fast to intercept the alpha. "Lyons! Hey!" he called out as he got closer.

The man slowed, turning towards Danny and looking him up and down. "Yes?" he asked, recognizing Danny's status, noticing the golden hue to his eyes. "Do you need help?"

"You can help me by confessing."

"I'm sorry?" Lyons practically laughed at him. 

"You see, I've got a lot of stuff going on," he waved his arms around as he spoke. "I'd really like to get this wrapped up today before my parents arrive for a visit. You'd make my life a lot easier if you'd just confess now to everything you did, hand yourself into Five-0, go to jail, all of that."

"You're one of the omegas discovered at the port," Lyons said as if piecing things together though his innocent act wasn't convincing Danny. "I'm sorry, just because my company has unfortunate links to the ships used doesn't mean-"

"Don't do that, don't hide behind that crap," Danny stopped him while the alpha looked down on him, amused. "Five-0 know it was you! They can link all sorts of things to people you've worked with… Mannis to Bankfoot to Turner-"

"I've never worked with-," the alpha held a hand up and took his chance to interrupt Danny. "Whatever Wyatt and Koa and whoever have got themselves into is their problem, not mine."

"But you worked with them."

"I work with a lot of people, it doesn't mean I'm involved in other things in their lives."

"But you worked with them on this. I promise you, you might think you've covered your tracks but you haven't. There are cracks in your operation and they're just getting bigger. Maybe you'd still be getting away with it now but your people picked the wrong omegas to mess with this time."

"You're the one that caused all that trouble at the port and started the fire," Lyons put together with calculating eyes but he still seemed to judge Danny and come up short, underestimating him. "Look, from what I heard, the omegas who were discovered were all runaways who shunned expectations but clearly you've seen the light now you're back being taken care of properly," Lyons gestured to the changes in Danny's eyes that were still obvious to the world. He shrugged as he continued, "It's genetics and you can't run and hide from that. Omegas are made for one purpose."

Danny felt his body tighten up, anger boiling over. "Of course, that one purpose being for alphas to do with as they please, right? We're just around for you to fuck and breed? Let's just trample over an omega's right to choose their own path in life; just ignore our intelligence and potential because of what alphas want? Let me guess, as far as you're concerned you were doing a public service by finding runaway omegas and selling them to the highest bidder, right? Because it's what we were made for and we were squandering it by living off grid?!"

Lyons gave a patronizing, soft shake of his head and reached a hand out to pat Danny's shoulder. "You 're the one who said it. Seemed pretty easy for you, too, like it's not far-fetched at all."

"You-" Danny began but the boiling hot rage inside got the better of him and before he even knew what he was doing, he'd pulled back and let rip with a sucker punch to Lyons' nose, skimming below as the man pulled back at the last moment and it cracked across his jaw.

There was enough force behind it to almost knock Lyons over, but the dazed alpha recovered reasonably quickly, wiping his hand over his face to check for blood that luckily wasn't there. 

Danny shook his hand out and paced away a step before turning back. "I'm also the omega who took on Turner and won," he noticed a fleeting irritation cross Lyons' face at the reminder of Turner's death. Danny may have been reading into things, but Lyons gave it away. Danny was good at spotting even the imperceptible shifts in a person's reactions - it was why he was so good at poker. "That's right. I'm the one who killed him. I can see by the look on your face that you knew him well enough to be angry at that. You think you're hiding it but I can see it and I will help Five-0 prove your involvement and then you'll spend the rest of your life behind bars. I'm pretty sure there's some alphas in prison who don't take too kindly to omega traffickers, especially when the omegas are so damned young, still kids."

Lyons squared his shoulders. He looked like he was about to grab for Danny, try and subdue him, but there was yelling from behind that stopped him. Danny wasn't sure what it was at first, too distracted by keeping the upper hand with Lyons that it took a few shouts of his name before he recognized it for what it was. 

Steve came running at full speed towards them and Lyons took a step back, recognizing Steve not just for his being a cop, but that he was Danny's alpha. And there was no way he was going to get involved in an altercation with a bonding alpha. 

"Danny!" Steve yelled again even though he had almost reached them. He came to a halt, pushing himself between the two men and shoving Danny back. "Go to the truck. NOW!" Steve ordered him. Danny tried to protest though only got as far as saying 'But-' before he was cut off, Steve's arm stretching out to point where he wanted Danny to go. "Truck. Now. No arguments. Wait for me over there!"

It wasn't like he hadn't expected an angry Navy SEAL, so Danny knew when to back down. Feeling contrite about his actions leading to his arrival at the building, he backed off, head down, though he was still satisfied at punching Lyons in the face.

"You need to keep your new omega in line, Commander. Teach him a few lessons about obeying alphas," Lyons started, glancing between the two as Danny backed up. Their eyes met again as Lyons continued. "Taking a strap to him wouldn't go amiss."

"I'll deal with him as I see fit, Mr. Lyons," Steve told him, turning back to monitor Danny's progress and once more pointing in the direction he wanted him to go and making it obvious he wanted him to hurry and not say a damned word back; that he would deal with it.

As Danny reached the truck, he leaned back on it and watched the two men talking as he thumbed his phone off again. They were too far for him to hear properly, but he didn't like what he saw as Steve seemed to be placating him and it ended with them shaking hands before Lyons walked away, still tending to his face where it hurt. 

Steve had a face like thunder, and though Danny knew he'd messed up, the remnants of his anger made him confrontational.

"He's not pressing charges. You're lucky," Steve said while he was still a good ten paces away.

Danny stood straight, gesturing in the direction Lyons was retreating in. "But what the hell was that?! You shake hands with that piece of shit?"

Steve held his hand up, fingers stretched. "Because he kept wiping at his nose and mouth after you’d hit him and he didn't wipe it off. I'm hoping there's traces of DNA here." He walked past Danny to the rear of the truck where he lifted the tarp and used his other hand to search around for the kit he was after. Finding it, he one-handedly swabbed his fingers and palm.

"That's disgusting," Danny told him, nose wrinkling but he kept watching.

"I'm making the best of a bad situation. We might get something out of this but do not think that if this works out for us that you're off the hook. What you did wasn't just reckless and dangerous. You went against my orders!"

"I'm not a member of your team, you can't order me. And you don't get to be that kind of alpha with me; I will break this bond!"

Finished, Steve put the swab in a bag and ran a wipe over his hands. "You didn't trust that I've been doing the right thing, making the right moves. You've jeopardized our op by coming here! You're right, you're not a member of my team, you're a civilian. That is why I'm bringing in someone with training to go undercover and not using you to rile the guy up into, what, confessing? Or trying to take you again?! I mean, what the hell was going to be accomplished by coming here on your own??"

Danny rubbed a hand on his face. "Honestly? I don't really know. I was about to come right back but then he came out the door and I just saw red."

"Get in the truck," Steve told him, though the order was more of a request this time. Danny did as asked and rounded the cab to pull himself up into the passenger side while Steve readjusted the drivers' seat to make it comfortable for himself again.

Danny pulled his seat belt on then turned more to face Steve as the alpha continued to fiddle like a perfectionist with the mirrors. "You said about my not trusting you…" he trailed off as he tried to think of the best way to talk about this. "I was on the run for twenty years, I had to be careful, I had to do everything for myself, even with Billy around. I'm not used to trusting other people… let alone an alpha, which is exactly the person - I mean, the _kind of_ person, I was running from."

Danny noticed how Steve's face twigged at his slight faux pas and correction, as Danny had tried to to avoid saying anything about someone specific back home. But Steve didn't press the issue, seemed to file it away for later though Danny hoped it might be forgotten about. 

"Look," Danny continued. "You and I, we just met, what, less that 72 hours ago? Am I just supposed to completely trust in you? Bond or not, no one trusts that much after such a short time. My head tells me to be wary and to protect myself and to do what I think I need to do and not rely on others to do it for me. And I listened to my head rather than my heart on this one. I guess I'm not used to caring about repercussions to a relationship." Danny realized he was still somehow trying to pass the buck and he knew he had to take a bit more responsibility and acknowledge his own failings. "I know my impulsive behavior isn't ideal, not today anyway…"

"Okay," Steve said, with a head nod. He wasn't giving much away as he met Danny's eyes again, but he didn't seem as angry as before and, without noticing, Danny's own anger had dissipated. 

"Okay," Danny agreed. It was like they'd apologized but without apologizing. Which was interesting. It also didn't feel like the conversation was over. 

Steve pulled out into the street and they were silent for a little while then Steve snorted, seemingly randomly. At Danny's curious look he spoke, "I was just thinking, it's not the McGarrett name that will cause people to think you're crazy. You're doing that all on your own, _'Williams'_."

Hearing the use of his last name from Steve was strange, even in jest. He couldn't recall in the time he'd known Steve an instance where he hadn't called him by his first name, at least to his face. Something pulled at his memory, made him think, something just out of reach. When he didn't laugh, Steve worried. 

"You okay?"

"Names," Danny murmured.

"Look, we'll have the conversation later about what you'll do, I just don't think it's top of the list right now for our priorities, what with your parents arriving and the bonding and getting you settled at home-"

"No, I mean the case," Danny said, pulling them away from talk about what Danny would do about changing his name to Steve's. "You just made me realize… Lyons, when we were talking, he used their first names."

"Whose first names?"

"Turner and Bankfoot. I mean, Bankfoot makes sense, he knew the guy, right? And we already knew that. They could be friends. But why refer to Turner as 'Wyatt' unless you know the guy?"

"He definitely called him Wyatt?"

"Leaving aside the fact that asking makes it sound like you don't believe me, I do have it all recorded on my phone because I was smart enough to work out how to hit record on the thing before I spoke to him. You'll hear it for yourself, it was too familiar. He didn't use the full name just referred to him as… 'Wyatt'"

"When we get back, I'm going to need you to give Chin your phone so we can take a copy of it," Steve then gave Danny a side eye. "Again, no matter what comes of any of this, you are still not off the hook."

Danny held a hand up, not arguing.

*

Danny had been banished to Steve's office where he was practically sulking as he occasionally paced, but mostly just tapped out random rhythms on the arm of the sofa as he sat on it.

Steve kept glancing to him, curiosity evident as he always found he was pulled in Danny's direction, but part of it was that now lack of trust he had that Danny would stay put, that he would talk to him. But Danny was right it had been three days, they didn't know each other very well even if it felt in his heart that Danny was perfect for him.

It wasn't a punishment, per se, but it held the ring of it as Steve pointed out to Danny yet again that he was a civilian and as such, shouldn't be so involved in the case. In fact, he wasn't just a civilian - he was a victim. But it was also amusing to watch Danny complain and sulk. Was that part of the bond? Was everything Danny did, even when it made Steve angry… cute?

He shook his head and turned back to pay attention to his team.

"Fong's doing a rush on the DNA but there's a lot of it that's been collected from the crime scenes recently. It's still gonna take a long time to match those samples up and he's still running the individual ones through the criminal databases and the ORC ones for matches," Lou said.

"But hopefully if it comes through for us we can use any and all matches to get warrants," Chin continued. "In Lyons' case it could be enough to get a judge to sign for access to DS Oil's whole system. It's still likely that Lyons would hide some of the business through the Oil company."

"The UC could still be quicker," Kono put in but Steve shook his head. 

"I still want to use Agent Jones but I think any omega going near Lyons will be looked on suspiciously after what Danny pulled earlier. He's not going to trust any kind of sexual advance, not now."

"She's a beta though, right? Why not just use her as a beta then? Have her go under cover at the company and try to get into his office. No one here knows her, her cover's still in tact to be able to to do so?"

"That should work," Chin agreed then looked beyond Steve to where Danny had got up to pace again for a moment. "What about Danny's theory about them knowing each other?"

"Jerry checked this didn't he?" Lou asked, confused. "I thought he didn't find anything."

"Anything recent," Steve reminded them. "Danny and I listened to the audio again in my office and we agree it sounds like there's more to it. Jerry could have missed something, especially if they purposely were trying to hide any connection they once had."

"Go back to high school, or younger," Danny said from where he was leaning against the door frame of Steve's office.

"What did I tell you about staying in the office?" Steve asked, exasperated, but Danny's appearance was somehow not unexpected and he felt a thrum through his heart at the small challenge Danny had thrown him.

"Yeah yeah," Danny waved off. "I'm just saying, how did you come to the conclusion that I was connected to Billy and possibly on this island? Especially considering there wasn't any record of us for the last twenty years."

"But you're an omega. You've got registries from a young age that alphas don't," Lou said.

"But alphas visit to see if they have matches, right? So dig into Lyons' history to see where he grew up and check the electronic logs of visiting alphas for the nearby ORCs and see if they both visited when they were younger. It would put them in the same place at the same time even if one of them had purged themselves from other records, Turner I'd presume since he's the one who went down the criminal path. ORC's keep better records than a lot of other government agencies."

"It's a long shot," Kono was unconvinced. 

Danny continued, "Both of them have douchebag mentalities that omegas are a commodity, that we're things to be owned, which is exactly the kind of people who would go looking for an omega in an ORC. Neither got paired up and then they became traffickers. It's probably out of some kind of revenge fantasy for not getting their way." As the others stared at him impressed, Danny just shrugged. "What? I read."

"Psychology books?" Lou asked on a snort.

"Sometimes," Danny simply answered before heading back into the office.

Steve turned back to them all. "Well we've got some digging to do."

"All except you, boss," Kono slapped his bicep with the back of her hand and smiled. "Don't you have the in laws to pick up at the airport?"

"Not for another few hours. I got a message that they were delayed at LAX."

"More time to spend with Danny before they get here, then. We're doing fine here, we've got enough eyes on this," she told him before he could make excuses. "You need to get to know him more. Maybe get him to teach you how to pick pockets," she winked at the last. 

"You're not funny," he told her. 

"Yeah I am," she answered as she walked off.

"Your boy's a smart one," Lou said, moving closer. "He's done a lot for this case so far. Sure, he ran off half-cocked earlier and gave you a hell of a scare, but don't hold that against him. After all, what would you have done if the situation had been reversed?"

"I'm an alpha. He's an omega. It's different."

"When I said he was smart, I didn't mean 'for an omega'. I mean he's smart. Full stop," Lou shook his head. "I thought you were overcoming preconceived notions of sub-gender. Danny hardly meets expectations. And neither do you."

"What?" Steve scoffed. He was an alpha through and through. 

Lou just laughed. "Catherine told me that she saw you shed a tear during the Notebook and don't lie to me- oh," Lou stopped himself. "Oh, I get it. She ran off and left you and when Danny disappeared earlier…"

"It's not like that," Steve said though he was half convincing himself as he awkwardly changed his stance. The thoughts had crossed his mind earlier.

"You're right, it's not. She's a beta who was scared of committing to an alpha and was more worried about herself. Danny's not like that and I know this after being around him for just a short amount of time. That man has integrity. And loyalty. A whole load of strength and a lot of love to give."

"Yes he does," Steve agreed. Lou's words had made Steve's heart soar with pride. His omega was a wonder to him and he never in a million years expected to feel this way.

"He's got a ton of spirit and he ain't gonna just roll over for you. The way I figure it, you're perfect for one another," Lou patted his shoulder and wandered off, leaving him alone, leaning back against the table top computer pondering just how right Lou was. 

He couldn't just stand and stare at Danny through the glass frontage of the office or he'd be accused of being a creeper, so he made his way back towards the omega. 

He closed the door for a modicum of privacy and went to sit next to Danny. "I always wanted an independent, free-thinking, _challenging_ partner. I can't complain when I finally get one," he said as he sat. "I never wanted an omega because I figured they'd adapt to me, change for me and that would be wrong. And yet here I am… expecting you to do that. To follow my orders. To slot into my home like you've always been there. To fall apart like all the trafficking victims I've dealt with in the past," he shook his head. "That's wrong of me. And I apologize."

"Apology accepted. And I'm sorry I stole your truck and ran off like a hot head with no control over his emotions. I know that even if I were a cop that would have been a dumb move and you're right, I have no real training or experience with it and I could have made things a whole lot worse. I just… I want revenge so badly. For Billy. And for the others. It feels like I'm this pressure cooker of rage that's been building and building for thirty years and now there's a person - people - to really lay into and blame and I just… went for it."

"I get it, I do. I thought you'd been handling everything so well, but maybe this anger you have is how the trauma is manifesting. Some people cry, some people disassociate… you get mad. You're still a victim here, Danny. You might not like it but it's true. You don't always have to be strong though. You can let that go and lean on me for a bit."

"I won't become some romance novel, wilting flower of an omega. That's not who I am."

"And if that's who you were, you wouldn't be here."

"True, I'd be on an auction block in a country where I don't speak the language."

"Actually I meant we wouldn't be bonding because I'm not attracted to the wilting flower type," Steve said and smiled, allowing the light moment to linger between them. He then slung an arm around Danny's shoulder and pulled him over to lean against him, literally. "We're not going to get this wrapped up today."

Danny gave a soft growl from the back of his throat. "I hate the thought that these assholes are still free and able to lead their lives after what they've done."

"We're going to get them. Just not today. But trust me, we will get them behind bars where they belong."

Danny's head lolled on Steve's shoulder as he turned to face him more. "I feel like there should be more that I can do."

"There isn't, not right now," Steve sighed, his fingers lightly running up and down Danny's arm then squeezing at his shoulder. "And there's nothing I can do either apparently. I was banished by the team who say they have everything under control."

Danny frowned. "You don't seem the type of person to switch off just because your team can handle things without you. You're more.. be all you can be, and all that crap."

"I'm Navy. That's an Army slogan. And actually, in this instance I'm going to listen to them."

"Really?" Danny asked, pulling his head up and giving Steve a disbelieving stare. 

"Yes. Well, in a few minutes. I want to check my email doesn't have anything urgent in it and then you and I will go shopping for a gift for your mom before we head to the airport." Steve patted Danny's back before pushing himself up from the chair, leaving the omega slouched on the sofa as he went around his desk.

"Urgh," Danny complained. "You'd think not having seen my parents in twenty years would mean I was excited to see them now but I'm really not. I love them but after all this time it just seems like they might be disappointed and angry. And will probably overcompensate making up for lost time."

Steve stood by the desk as he brought his laptop out of sleep mode and began clicking around the screen. "Your parents love you. And take it from someone who lost their dad and who thought their mom was dead for most of their life only to find out she was a spy who has since run off again… I'd give anything to have them here even if they were mad at me for something I did."

Danny understood the sentiment behind Steve's words but the casual way in which he proposed them by earmarking his history made Danny blink. "I have so many questions right now…." he let his words drift off, assuming Steve would either find something amusing or actually dig deeper into the story of his life but the other man was engrossed in the screen. "Something wrong?" Danny asked.

"A friend of mine, a prosecuting attorney, has sent me… something," he looked up at where the omega was still sitting but had straightened and leaned forward. "When we arrested Gray I asked her to keep an eye on the case for me as a favor."

"What's she saying about it?"

"A court appointed psychologist met with Gray earlier this afternoon to assess her competency and to see if there could be any traction for an insanity plea. The psychologist sent the video of it to Ellie and she's sent it on to me."

"Is she even allowed to do that? Isn't there some kind of privilege or something, attorney/client or whatever?"

"Apparently Gray specifically wanted part of the session to be sent to… you," Steve's face betrayed a worry. Danny was surprised he was being open about it; he'd have expected Steve to keep this hidden from Danny entirely until he'd vetted it. That would be normal alpha behavior. But Steve was proving that he respected Danny enough to tell him the truth and treat him more equally.

Danny stood and began walking to Steve's side. "Like a message?"

"Possibly," Steve said, eyes rereading the text of the email that Ellie had written to him. It was mostly vague, telling him that what he'd see in the video was self explanatory.

"Unless it's an apology I'm not interested," Danny said adamantly, crossing his arms. "And you know what? I'm still not interested even then. I'm not going to give her the satisfaction of watching it." His words were final. 

Steve was torn, on one hand he wanted to know if the video was a threat to Danny or their bond, and on the other, he wanted to honor Danny's wishes to ignore it and let justice take it's course. "Are you sure?"

Danny could see the war waging in Steve's head. As much as his own words had been final when he'd said them, he could admit he felt the same way. Maybe it was important and the curiosity would eat at him. "No, I'm not sure at all," Danny said, rubbing at his head. "Whatever it is, I'm not going to like it but I think we have to take a look."

Steve opened the file, allowing it to load up and begin; his left arm gravitating to Danny's waist, fingers dipping under the waistband of Danny's pants and holding on. 

_"Okay, from this point on and until you say stop is the portion I will attempt to share with Danny Williams. I can't guarantee he'll watch it, or that his alpha will allow it-"_

_Gray banged her palms onto the table as much as possible around the cuffs that held them in place. "That cop is not his alpha, **I am.** "_

_"That's not what everyone else thinks, including Danny and Commander McGarrett who have officially acknowledged the fledgling bond."_

_"Well everyone is wrong, they've been swayed by McGarrett's charm but I don't buy it. I wouldn't be shocked if he'd bribed the officials somehow in order to get Danny."_

_"Why would he do that?"_

_"Are you kidding me? Danny's a **prime**. That's why I know he's mine."_

_"I don't understand."_

_"I have known my whole life that I was destined to be paired with a prime. I specialized in primes, I know them better than almost any other alpha on the planet ever has. Of course I deserve to be paired with one. Think of what I can learn about how their bodies work! And he'll provide me a prime baby that I can study from the womb going forward in ways no alpha has ever been able to before!"_

_"You want to study him and any offspring you would produce? Dissect them?"_

_"YES! No! You're twisting my words," she gathered herself. "It doesn't matter. I know the bond he and I began is the real one. As his alpha it doesn't matter what I would do with him, all that matters is that he belongs to me and I **demand** that my ownership be recognized!"_

_"From what I've heard, Danny doesn't consider himself anyone's property. Perhaps that clash of views is why he doesn't want to bond with you?"_

_Gray gritted her teeth. "He does want to bond with me, his mind has been warped against me. He knows his place." She took a breath then looked around to find the camera to talk directly into it. "Danny, I know you'll watch this. And I know because you can't resist the lure of your true alpha - **me**. I promise you, when these charges against me are thrown out of court, we will be reunited and continue our bond."_

_"Is that everything?"_

_"No," Gray continued. "One more thing. Commander McGarrett, if you get in my way, you will regret it." There was a long pause as she stared into the camera, then she slowly lowered her head back to the psychologist, keeping her posture straight and strong as she did so, with an air of calm. "I'm finished now."_

The video cut off as it ended. 

"She's insane," Danny breathed out, knowing he was stating the obvious but what else could be said. And he hated that he'd watched now that she'd accused him of doing so because he wanted her as his alpha. It was absurd. But in her mind she was gaining a victory by him seeing it and he detested giving her that. 

Steve took a confident breath then shut the lid of his laptop with finality. "None of it matters. She's not getting out of jail for a very long time. Ellie will make sure of it. And even if she did come near you once out, she'd be violating all kinds of terms of release and she'd be sent right back inside again."

"But what if-"

"No, don't even think of what ifs. Ellie and the DA are fighting for a maximum prison sentence in her case and a lifetime ban from going near any omega. She's out of your life for good."

Danny turned and sat back against the desk. "Every time I think about her my stomach turns."

Steve stood closer, a knee between Danny's legs to part them so he could stand between them. He reached to cup Danny's jaw. "And how do you feel when you think about me?"

"I feel… settled. Warm."

Steve smiled and pressed a kiss to Danny's forehead. "Then don't let thoughts of her get near and think of me all the time instead," it was a small joke of distraction, but it held a certain amount of alpha posturing.

Danny could tell that Steve had been affected by the video and wanted to rival any 'claim' Gray had by shouting his own from the rooftops but he was trying not to spook Danny's independent streak by keeping things subtle. Danny squeezed Steve's forearm, feeling a need to reassure him. "Hey, we're bonding. You and me. I know we've got a couple of hurdles and I appreciate how respectful you're being to my family and to me, but you shouldn't listen to her either."

Steve kissed Danny's lips, soft at first but he gave in to the indulgence of deepening it, claiming Danny's mouth in a promise of what would come later. Danny hummed as their lips parted. He could admit that Steve was a great kisser, and that those kisses affected him in many way… they made him feel weak at the knees, strong of heart and satisfied in his soul. Maybe it was the fledgling bond but they always made him feel slow and drowsy, and it took him a minute to come back to himself as they parted.

"Speaking of family," Steve reminded him with a gloating smile, noting the effect he had on Danny. "We need to get going."


	10. Chapter 10

"Maybe I should have got the other one."

"The one you got is fine."

"But the one with the-"

"Stop worrying, she'll love it. She'll also tell you off for spending so much money on her," Danny turned to face Steve and away from the people arriving at the baggage claim.

"She's your mother. I will treat her with the respect she deserves. She's come all this way, the least I can do is get her a nice gift," Steve fiddled with the two leis wrapped over his wrist. "With the ORC paying to put them up at the Hilton, I had to come up with something half decent."

"Babe, you got her rose gold diamond earrings with a matching necklace. Trust me, you got her something more than half decent," he squeezed Steve's arm then turned back to people watching. 

Steve checked the time again, nerves evident and Danny kept suppressing a smile. He was strangely grateful to Steve for allowing Danny to see him nervous - it kept Danny from thinking about how worried he was as to his parents' reaction to seeing him after all these years and it showed more of Steve's trust in him to let his guard down and show a less alpha side to his nature. "Any minute now."

Danny wrapped an arm around Steve's and pressed into his side, briefly touching his lips to Steve's t-shirt clad shoulder. "Just remember, my father may do a lot of paper pushing these days but he's still a firefighter so he's tough and he'll probably make fun of you for being a cop. He used to rile up my uncle all the time over that rivalry. Don't let it get to you. Just be nice to mom and everything will be fine."

"You're right, it'll be fine. I mean what's the worst that can happen? You dad makes us halt the bonding? He's not going to do that." Steve said then seemed unconvinced. "He wouldn't make us do that, right?"

Danny laughed. "I doubt it."

Steve pulled his arm out of Danny's hold and wrapped it round the omega's shoulder. He kissed into Danny's hair just at the moment there was a call of Danny's name and both men looked up to see Clara Williams striding ahead of her husband so she could swoop in to give her son a breath-stealing hug.

*

"I'm just saying, are you sure the suitcases are fine back there?" Clara gestured behind her to the truck bed. It was too late to move them anyway as Steve was driving full speed down the H1.

"They're fine, Ma. They're not going to fall out, it's not possible," Danny said from where he was sitting beside his mother in the rear seats of the truck.

"I wouldn't have thought a truck would be a practical vehicle for a cop to drive," Eddie said from the passenger seat. "How do you chase after criminals in something that takes so long to get to full speed and can be easily out run? I bet a fire truck would beat this thing."

"It's also not practical for a family. Just saying," Clara put in and mouthed a 'what?' to Danny when he shot her a look. 

"High speed chases aren't common on the island and when they do happen, the Silverado has handled fine. It's also reliable, sturdy… provides good cover," Steve said. "And as for family, I already planned on getting a third car, one that would be Danny's."

"Third car?" Clara asked. 

Steve darted his head back to look in her direction before returning his eyes to the road. "My dad left me his old marquis. I've been trying to get it running again, rebuilding the engine. It's just a hobby."

"By the time I was your age I had four kids. No time for hobbies," Eddie said with an edge of disapproval.

"It's surprising that someone of your… 'caliber' hasn't been paired with an omega already, Steve?" Clara took over from her husband.

"I've been very focused on my career. I never really thought about it. Being in the SEALs kept me busy, ma'am."

"Oh, hush with the ma'am stuff. Call me Clara. Or mom if you'd like. We're practically family now."

Eddie turned back to give his wife a look. "He's not family yet. Not until I say so," he then swiveled again to stare out through the windscreen, watching the traffic and reacting to Steve's driving decisions. The car was quiet for a while until Eddie continued in the same vein. "I'd have preferred an alpha from Jersey. Maybe New York. Your mother missed you terribly, Danny. We were worried sick about you, never sure if you were alive or dead… and now that we know you're okay you're planning on staying here on an island thousands of miles away from us?"

"It's not like we planned it, pop. It just happened."

"Just happened…" Eddie shook his head. "The cop who was hunting for you 'just happens' to wind up bonding with you. We expected McGarrett to do his job and find you so we could take you home."

"And he did find me. Kinda," Danny said, leaning forward so he could get closer to his father. "And even if you did want to take me home, the ORC here would have a fit. They decided I was a flight risk, there was no way they were going to let me go anywhere without a mountain of security." He leaned back again, smile playing on his lips. "Which, come to think of it, is quite the compliment to my talents as an escape artist."

Clara and Steve both chuffed a short laugh at Danny's attempt to defuse the tension but Eddie stayed solidly straight faced. "We wanted you home. Near your sisters and us. Your mother worries, you know that."

"Eddie, give the boys a break," Clara admonished him. "I just want my children to be happy. If this is what Danny wants then that's okay. And we can come out and visit whenever we want. Who doesn't like Hawaii?"

"I don't," Eddie and Danny said in unison, giving each other strange looks that crossed between curious and solidarity. 

"The sand and the sun and the weird language," Danny put in. 

"It's expensive," Eddie used as his reason. "Costs a fortune to come out here."

"The ORC is paying for the trip, Eddie," Clara reasoned. 

"They won't be next time, Clara," Eddie responded.

"We're here!" The relief seemed to swell through Steve as he pulled up outside the main entrance to the Hilton Hawaiian Village. He jumped out of the truck quickly to get the suitcases out the back. Eddie followed him and Danny could just make out some more polite conversation between the two as his mom turned to him. 

"What are we doing for dinner?"

"I think Steve planned to take you guys to one of the restaurants in the hotel. Tropical something? He'll keep you right."

"You like him. He's good to you?"

"So far he's been pretty perfect, Ma," Danny said, a hint of a blush on his cheeks, especially after his mother cupped them and gave him a blistering smile.

"After all these years, I get you back and you've found yourself a good bond mate. Even if it is all the way out here. Don't listen to your father, he's just being an alpha. He's happy, too."

"Thanks, Ma. You'd better go get unpacked. I'll see you in a little bit."

*

Dinner had been awkward. 

It had started out well - Clara wore the gift Steve had bought her everyone seemed happy as they'd entered 'Tropics'.

Then things got shaky when Eddie brought up the prices of the entrees and that had segued neatly into a conversation about whether or not Danny would 'go back to work'. Clara tried to put an end to that topic after Steve's refusal to let Danny work at any 'tourist trap dive bar with drunk alphas trying to paw at him'. 

Eddie had seemed on board with Steve's planning but the SEAL still felt the man disapproved of him as Danny's alpha. If it were up to him, apparently Eddie would prefer Danny officially got his high school diploma and even take some college classes.

While on the subject of jobs, Eddie let it be known that he'd looked into Five-0 and into Steve specifically. Being a Fire Chief meant he had good contacts at the local PD in Newark and with that also came some federal colleagues who had quickly got him information before he'd left to come to Hawaii.

Apparently Steve's record wasn't so impressive to the man who had fathered the omega Steve was bonding with.

After the entrees had been cleared and desert was being considered, Steve took the opportunity to grab Danny and excuse them from the table by going to the bar for more drinks. As they relaxed against the counter, they watched as Clara and Eddie seemed locked into a serious conversation of their own. 

Steve leaned down closer to Danny. "He hates me."

"He doesn't hate you," Danny scoffed. "He's just getting to know you, how can he hate you?"

"He hates me. Weren't you paying attention tonight? He acts like I'm a bum with no prospects."

Danny shook his head. "Listen to me, alright? He doesn't. He's got a lot of respect for the military. He fought in Vietnam, he knows what it takes. He's just- look- they missed out on my life and on certain things, so this is just like… scaring my prom date a little."

"Except I'm not a kid, I'm a decorated Navy SEAL and I'm your alpha," Steve all but growled though there was a hint of a frustrated whine somewhere in there. 

"Technically, pop's still my alpha. Hence all the posturing," Danny was actually pretty relaxed despite the tension. He'd thought there would be more blame and anger leveled at him by his parents for his running off, but they seemed to be glossing over it right now. And it was kind of amusing to watch his father and Steve interacting. "Hey, look at me," he reached for Steve's arms and turned him so they were facing each other. "You're doing great."

"I don't think so."

"Well, I do. And it's all moot regardless. You and I are bonding, right? This whole whirlwind is happening and we got on board with it already and my parents will just have to follow suit. Come here," he pulled Steve down to him, seeing the little smile that played on Steve's lips before they connected with Danny's. 

A throat cleared beside them, making their heads turn. "Steve, let's take a walk," Eddie said, stern face still in place. 

"Go," Danny encouraged. "Mom and I will hold the fort and drink these… blue concoctions- what the hell did you order for us?"

"Blue Hawaiians. They're a classic. You'll love them," Steve told Danny despite the smaller man's wrinkled nose. "They have pineapple."

"I hate pineapple."

"You hate it on pizza, there's a difference."

"Steve?" Eddie put in before the bickering could continue, gesturing for them to go.

"Yes, sir," Steve answered, patting Danny's shoulder before walking off. He glanced back one more time and was witness to Danny pulling a face as he bit into the pineapple decoration on the edge of the glass. 

"Son, I think it's time we have a proper talk. Put some things to rest. My wife has made it clear to me that I need to learn that everything isn't my decision, even if I am the alpha," his voice was disgruntled, but there was clear affection in it.

"I take it the apple didn't fall far from the tree in Danny's case?"

"It really didn't. Now Danny's older sister, Stella, she was always the consummate omega. Practically a stereotype and where did it get her? Her bond mate was a lousy son of a bitch who up and left her when Eric was five years old. But that's what you get for bonding with a beta when you're seventeen…"

"Sir, I won't abandon Danny or our family. I'm not that kind of man."

"I appreciate that but time will truly tell if that is the case. My concern is for my son. But as my wife has pointed out to me, he's been on his own for twenty years, he doesn't need me breathing down his neck over what he wants to do with his life. We're lucky he's back in ours, in any capacity he chooses."

"Giving him the right to choose is all he's ever wanted."

"And he's made the right choices," Eddie slapped Steve's shoulder and began to let some of the tension defuse between both of them. "I for one am glad he didn't end up with that kid that took a shine to him when they were younger. What was his name? Began with a 'T'… Tommy? no… Todd. Yes, that one lasted from elementary school right up to when Danny disappeared. Little punk eventually got himself banged up for abuse. We dodged a bullet on that one. Not that I think I'd ever have consented to them pairing up but it gives you pause for thought."

"Sir, I've got to ask. If you approved of Danny and I, why act like you didn't?"

"Oh that wasn't an act," Eddie stopped walking and gave Steve a serious look again. "I needed to know for myself that you weren't just after the government hand outs because of Danny's status. Or that you were just some cop who goes through bond mates as quickly as you guys do donuts."

"So what did I say that changed your mind?" Steve asked, genuinely curious, because he couldn't pinpoint anything he had said or done that seemed so profound as to satisfy Eddie's worries. 

"Oh, it was nothing from you," Eddie laughed. "It was Danny. You may have noticed that my son is an excellent judge of character. It's something omegas are always good at, more empathetic or whatever," he explained and Steve nodded - everyone knew omegas were more tuned in to people's feelings. "Primes, as you're about to find out, are even better at it than regular omegas. It's like living with a human lie detector and poker expert rolled into one. Danny, and his mother, can see your true self. And one thing is for sure, I can tell Danny isn't being coerced to be with you, and the affection in his eyes is the real deal. If he thinks you're a good guy, then it's true.That kid I said about, that Todd fella. Danny never liked him. Avoided him whenever he could. Clara? She taught elementary school after she had all our kids and she always knew the good from the bad and to this day she'll hand me the local paper where she'll see something about a kid she once taught and every time she'll say 'I knew it'. Good or bad."

"I never realized primes were so… intuitive. It explains a lot," Steve looked back to where Clara and Danny were talking at the table. The men had walked some distance and people kept crossing over Steve's sight line, but his eyes zeroed in on Danny without any problem, making his chest warm.

"The science of it baffles my mind. To me, it's practically magic but I tell you one thing. It's an asset," Eddie waved a finger at Steve as he spoke, much like he was giving Steve a lesson. "As much as he can use it against you, and he will, mark my words, he will, it's still an advantage. Don't waste it. And don't let him waste his talents either."

Steve readjusted his stance and looked at Eddie as if he'd just figured the man out. "Do you support the omega rights' movements? The OLP and what they stand for? I'm curious. Not judging."

"I'm just an old, crotchety alpha. What do I know about politics? All I can tell you is what I learned by bonding with a prime and fathering 4 omegas. They're a damned sight better than us. Wiser, calmer, and god dammit I'd wager stronger where it counts."

Steve nodded slowly. "I think I'd have to agree."

*

The laughter around the table was in stark contrast to how the evening had begun. Maybe it was because of the release of tension after the two alphas had spoken, or maybe it was the cocktails.

"To the monkey cage?!" Steve asked, tears in his eyes as he laughed so hard.

"Hey, he deserved it!" Danny replied, leaning over towards Steve, laughing with him as he reached out to his arm. 

"Danny went back after about five minutes. Couldn't bear to let anything happen to his little brother," Clara laughed, but it turned wistful as they all sobered. All they had of Matty was childhood memories - his car accident robbing them of his bright future.

"I'm sorry I wasn't there, Ma," Danny said, reaching over to Clara's wrist in condolence. He had been on the run for about two years when Matty had his accident. He'd discovered about it while checking up on things back home. It had been while he and Billy were in Cincinnati. He'd been tempted to go home, or at least _do something_ but Billy had convinced him to stay hidden. It had been a tough time for Danny and shortly after they'd had to leave and head for Chicago when Danny's grief had possibly given them away. 

"I know," Clara patted Danny's hand. "He'd want you to be happy. You know that."

"It's getting late," Eddie announced. "The jet lag kicked in about two hours ago and we've stubbornly pushed past it but I think it's time we headed to our room."

"Are you boys okay getting home?" Clara asked, question clearly about how much Steve might have had to drink, but the SEAL had been sticking to beer and hadn't had many. "It's not too far is it? I'm looking forward to seeing your home tomorrow."

"It's about twenty minutes from here. I'll get Danny home safely," Steve reassured her.

"That's good. How many bedrooms do you have?" she asked innocently.

"Three," Steve was quick to answer. 

"Perfect. So you don't have to worry about moving when you start having children."

"No, we don't" Steve answered for them. He and Danny hadn't discussed family and kids yet, though the expectation was always evident. Steve also knew that when it came to parents-in-law, it was best to nod and agree regardless. And to make it clear that he was a gentleman. "And, of course, Danny is able to have a room to himself at the moment."

Eddie scoffed while Clara just smiled confusedly. "That's sweet, Steve. But you don't need to worry about what we think about all that. The two of you are bonding. I think all of us at this table know what that entails, no need to be prudish."

"Ma, he's not covering for us. We've really kept ourselves separate. Well, mostly. It's only been one night and I spent the majority of it in front of the TV since I had trouble sleeping."

"Well, it's ridiculous. In the bonding period it's expected that you'd spend as much time together as possible, including through the night," Clara pointed out.

"We haven't exactly gone about any of this in the normal way, Ma," Danny said. 

"That's true. You're doing everything ass backwards. Unconsciously bonding then backing away from one another?" Eddie said. 

"I just want Danny to be comfortable," Steve reasoned. "A lot has happened."

"And omegas bounce back quicker than any other sub-gender," Eddie pointed out. "Don't treat him like the fine china."

Clara stood along with her husband, both of them ready to go back to their room. "I haven't had a chance to embarrass my son in twenty years so," she circled round to Danny and held his cheeks in her hands. "Go home and sleep with Steve. You'll feel better for it," she winked at him as he began to blush, then she kissed his head before giggling as she went back to where Eddie was waiting for her and they took their leave.

Still slightly in shock at how the entire evening, in fact, the entire **day** had progressed. Steve caught the waiter and asked for the check.

*

As soon as they were in the house, Steve had cracked open a bottle of beer. He'd been designated driver so he'd been good throughout dinner and now he just needed to gulp one down. 

Danny leaned his shoulder against the kitchen door frame and watched as half the bottle disappeared quickly. "My parents driving you to drink? Try growing up with them."

"Your parents are fantastic, Danny," Steve told him as he put the bottle down on the counter. "It's just been a long, strange day."

"Yeah, it has," Danny said then took slow steps closer, pulling out a chair from the table and sitting, resting his walking stick against the table. "I'm tired. These last few weeks have been insane and it just doesn't feel like we're getting off this ride for a while longer."

"Listen, don't think I'm forgetting about what this is all like for you. After being kidnapped and brought here, spending all that time at sea in the dark of that container. Fighting for your life far too many times and bonding with me. I just really want for you to be able to stop and sit down and not have to worry."

"That would be nice."

"The traffickers, Lyons, Gray, the ORC, those other omegas, your parents… since I've met you, you've had other people on your mind. You need to take some time to just do what you want." He went over to Danny, took his hand and pulled him to his feet so he could wrap his arms around Danny's back. "So what do you want?"

"Honestly? I just want sleep," Danny said, closing his eyes and leaning his forehead on Steve's shoulder. "I just need to lie down, curl up and get comfortable."

"That much I can do, come on," he tugged Danny in the direction of the stairs and up. This time he went past the bedroom Danny had started out in the night before and instead prodded him towards the master.

"Steve-" Danny began, sounding like he was protesting but Steve just cut him off.

"It's bigger. It's more comfortable. And your mother was right, there's no reason for us to purposely hold back considering that the bond is happening. Besides, you complained you couldn't sleep in my old room last night so there's no point in bothering with it again. I think this room is actually quieter."

"If you're sure," Danny trailed off. Since admitting he was tired, his body and brain had colluded to really make him feel it. Right now he was happy leaving any decisions to Steve.

"Positive," Steve steered Danny to the bed and let him sit. "I'm going to check the house is locked up and set the alarm. Just get ready for bed and I'll be back in a bit," he placed a kiss into Danny's hair then left the room. 

Danny took a breath, forced his eyes to stay open and got the majority of his clothes off. Kono had brought all sorts of things for him that morning, including proper sleep pants but he couldn't be bothered getting them from the other room, so he just took off the jeans and Steve's t-shirt he'd been wearing and crawled into bed in his underwear.

Steve returned to the sight of Danny curled on his side with the sheets up and tucked around him. He went through a quick nightly routine, closed the curtain and switched the light off before joining Danny in the bed. He didn't hesitate to crawl nearer and wrapped himself around Danny.

Though they'd ended up sleeping together on the couch the night before in a remarkably similar position, this felt different. This felt like expectation had caught up with them but neither man had a problem with it and there was no awkwardness. 

Danny reached a hand to rub against Steve's forearm and snuggled backwards into the hold. He was unused to sleeping with someone next to him, so close. He liked it. It was warm and felt like he was in a cocoon and safe. Steve was right that Danny needed someone to lean on after everything that had happened and though Danny hated to be a burden, he felt Steve was exactly the kind of person who would always be there for him, making Danny important. It was humbling. It gave him butterflies and made him shiver. And it was kinda sexy.

He encouraged Steve's hand lower, fingers dipping under the waistband of his boxers. They didn't say anything, they didn't have to - high school biology taught you enough to know that sexual contact during a bonding process sped it along. What was happening now was more of an affirmation from each of them that this was right; they were giving in to what neither man really wanted to delay.

Steve ran his fingers over Danny's dick and then behind, exploring over Danny's clit, rubbing it as Danny lifted his leg up and back to hook around Steve's thigh.

"Feel good?" Steve murmured against Danny's ear.

"Hmmmhmmm," Danny answered, eyes closed as he just allowed his body to feel as Steve began to lick and kiss along his shoulder. 

As Steve sucked and bit into his lower neck, he pressed his middle finger inside Danny's already slick vagina, making Danny's breath hitch at the dual stimulation. Steve's finger moved in and out of Danny, thumb stroking against his clit as Danny undulated his hips slowly in response, widening his legs, trying to get Steve closer, deeper. 

"You're so wet for me, baby."

"Keep going," Danny's hand joined Steve's. "Right there." Steve's pace quickened, a second finger joining the first as it moved inside Danny. "Fuck."

"Give it to me. Come on, baby, you can come for me, I want to see it, you look so good," Steve tugged at Danny's ear lobe with his teeth before he got an arm under himself so he could lift up. Towering over Danny in a better position the fingers he was using to get Danny off pushed in further. Danny let his head fall back into the pillow and gasped in short breath after short breath. 

Steve's lips covered his own, tongue pressing into his mouth in tandem with the fingers in his pussy. He knew he was getting closer - Steve's familiar warmth had turned to a burning heat all around him, his muscles were tightening and he felt the desperation for release.

Breath stopping and starting, Danny lifted his butt form the bed, constantly seeking Steve's fingers deeper, faster, chasing every movement, every thrust. Slickness coated Steve's fingers, Danny felt like it was trickling out of him, it felt like there was so much of it. He squeezed his eyes shut, knowing he could come at any second. 

"You like my fingers? You want my mouth, too? My hard alpha dick? I can fill you up good and deep, Danny, you're gonna love it, you're gonna want more and more…"

"I'm gonna c- I'm go- gonna come-" Danny stuttered out and then felt the orgasm slam into him, body tightening as he pulsed around Steve's still probing fingers and felt the excess slick spurt from his dick, wetting the material of his boxers that he still had on.

"Let me feel it, that's it," Steve soothed as the sweat on Danny's body began to cool and he shivered as he felt himself collapse into the mattress, the last of his orgasm being pulled out of him as Steve crooked his fingers again. As he finally pulled them out he wiped them against Danny's thigh and then stroked up over his hip and chest, plucking briefly at an erect nipple. "You're beautiful, baby."

Danny reached to cup Steve's cheek and gave him a dopey grin. "You hard?"

"Who wouldn't be after seeing that?" Steve smirked back, dipping his head to rub his nose against Danny's before giving him a chaste kiss on the lips.

"My turn," Danny teased.

"It's okay, you don't-"

"I want to. You saw me, I wanna see you," Danny told him as he pressed Steve over and onto his back before straddling him. With Danny's slow kisses down Steve's chest, the alpha spread himself across the mattress and used a hand to guide Danny down, massaging into his hair. 

Danny moved the material of Steve's briefs aside, pulling the hard dick out of its confines and after wiping a hand between his own legs, he used the gathered slick to lube Steve's dick as he began to stroke it.

"Holy fuck," Steve breathed, watching through half lidded eyes in the dark. A wave of desire ran through him, satisfaction that Danny was his, was pleasuring him and was scenting him with slick and saliva.

In the same way as Danny had guided Steve to help through his own orgasm, Steve followed suit, using one of his own hands to help Danny pump his cock just the way he liked it, twisting over the head and down, keeping a firm grip.

Danny lowered his head, licked at the base of Steve's cock and mouthed over his balls, teasing him with tongue. Danny had come fast, Steve knew he'd do the same. It had to be the bond, maybe because it was the end of a long day, but he had no strength in him to hold back.

"Danny," he breathed in warning and then he was coming, spurting out, using his grip over Danny's hand to angle his dick so that he was hitting Danny's stomach and chest with the strands of cum. "Come here," he pulled against Danny's hips, bringing him and then twisting them so Danny was flat on his back and Steve was the one on top. His hands massaged over Danny's stomach, rubbing the cum in against him, returning the scent marking of this early bond. It was primal and instinctual from both of them and it felt good, even if they were going to shower in the morning. 

He licked up Danny's throat and over his chin before kissing him, wet, open, sloppy. With a few trailed, aimless kisses over Danny's cheek, Steve nuzzled against him and turned them so that he was spooning into Danny, returning to the positions they'd started in only now there was a glean of sweat, they were out of breath and they were sticky.

Steve's hand gravitated back to Danny's groin, lazily flicking a finger against his clit then running a flat hand over his vagina to his asshole and settling like some warped protective cup over everything.

*

Both men slept better than they had in a while and woke with lazy kisses, hands stroking over bare skin and the kind of teasing that only those in the early spark of a relationship could get away with, including Steve wanting Danny to shower with him but the omega refused, mainly because he was hungry and wanted breakfast.

After Steve had showered and dressed, Danny had already had two cups of coffee and made himself cereal. In a move that would have looked practiced to an outsider, they swapped over with perfect timing - Danny disappearing to get ready for the day while Steve headed to the kitchen. 

While sipping at his own coffee, Steve picked up his cell and dialed Ellie's number, getting her voice mail. "Elie, it's Steve, listen I just wanted to ask for a small favor. I know you'll say it's not the kind of law you work in, but I'd like your help finalizing the transfer documents for Danny becoming my omega. It's not that I don't trust the ORC or Eddie - or that I'm cheap - I just want to make sure everything's okay. Give me a call back when you get this."

Danny appeared a short while later wearing clothing Kono had brought the day before for him - nice slacks and a button down shirt that he practically bust out of but seemed to find comfortable. Steve watched as the omega turned up the sleeves of the shirt to his elbows. "You look good," Steve told him around the lump in his throat that formed as he flashed back to saying something similar the night before as Danny had writhed below him.

"Thanks. You're wearing cargo pants again. Is that all you ever wear?"

"To work? Pretty much. They're practical," he qualified with a shrug.

"Okay," Danny let the issue slide. Who was he to judge what was professional or not, it wasn't like he'd ever had a decent job to dress up for. "Oh, I need to call my parents see what's going on. My phone is still charging somewhere," he looked around himself, then remembered it was in the living room and grabbed his walking stick from where he'd left it by the table the night before, and went to find it.

Danny was then closest when the doorbell rang. He opened it to find Lou Grover on the other side. "Got your mail," the big man said, thrusting the letters into Danny's hands and striding into the house. Danny raised an eyebrow at the gesture but let it slide.

Steve appeared through the doorway between the kitchen and living room, dish rag in hand as he wiped over his fingers. "Where are we at?" he asked, launching in, both men falling into a work rhythm they'd perfected over the last year.

"Jones spent the evening with us going over cover stories, she's in play this morning. Kono and Chin are backing her up from a safe distance. She seems extremely competent, very smart. Joe White picked a good one there, I'm glad NCIS could spare her."

"I guess I owe Sam Hanna more than just a steak dinner now but if this works it'll be worth it," Steve said. 

As they continued their conversation, Danny flicked through the mail out of mere curiosity and then let out a quiet 'huh' when he saw his name on a small package. He put the other mail aside on the back of the sofa and opened it, thinking it might be something from the ORC as they were the only ones who would maybe think to send him something at Steve's address.. Whatever was inside had been held in place on some kind of spring. As Danny opened it, a gooey liquid was flung out at his face and he dropped the package instantly as he yelped in surprise and jarred his bad knee in the process. 

"What the-?" Steve started as he saw what was going on. "Danny!" he kicked the envelope aside, motioning for Lou to check it out and reached for the omega with both hands. "What were you doing?"

"It was addressed to me! I'm not allowed to open my mail now? This is gross," he said as he wiped the gunk from his face. "What is it?"

Lou used a pen from his pocket to check the envelope over, hitting it to see if anything else happened. He then gingerly picked it up to examine it and found a note inside with the booby trap. "'Dear Danny,'" he began reading. "'McGarrett is a weak fool. You'll be taught what a real alpha is. Those who donated to your gift look forward to fucking you and gifting you fresh cum while you take it deep like a good little…' Dear God," Lou screwed his face up and stopped reading in disgust.

Upon realizing what was being referred to as a 'gift', Danny began wiping crazily at himself. Steve growled angrily and tore off his outer shirt to help get the mess off. "Go get in the shower," Steve ordered.

Danny tensed up as he got some in his mouth then pushed Steve's hands aside. "Wait, wait,"

"No waiting, you need to wash this stuff off, NOW!"

"No, I mean, yes, but wait. I don't-" Danny said as he was being ushered to the stairs by Steve. "Listen, wait. I may not be an expert but I don't think this is cum. Not unless it usually tastes like pancake mix."

"Pancake mix?" Steve held still, unsure about what he was hearing - alpha possessiveness warring with common sense. All he knew was that he and Danny had scented last night and the thought of someone else trying to override that was abhorrent to him. 

"Watered down, sure, but that's what it tastes like."

"You tasted it?!" Steve's voice rose about an octave.

"Not intentionally," Danny whacked Steve's shoulder. "Get it tested or whatever, I'm pretty sure I'm right. I'm headed for the shower anyway, don't worry. Stay here and sort things out with Lou for the case, it's more important."

Danny bounded up the steps. Steve was tempted to follow, to take over and be the one to make sure Danny's body and hair was scrubbed clean and then he wanted to hold Danny close in their bed again and make sure only he could get anywhere near the omega in any kind of intimate way. It clawed at his mind but he tamped down on those prehistoric desires and let reason win. It wasn't what the letter said it was, Danny was fine, the bond was secure.

But he was still angry that someone dare send something like that.

"I think your boy is right," Lou said as he gingerly sniffed at the envelope. "I'll get Fong to test it though. He might be able to get fingerprints from it or DNA. I'll look into where it might have been sent from."

"That bitch is going to learn to back off," Steve's voice pitched low, his hands fully fisted tight as his mind began spinning in a need for revenge. Sure, it was most likely pancake mix but there was intent. And it was sent to Danny. It was sent to Steve's home. Someone wanted to intimidate and make a point and he knew who that had to be. "She'll pay for this."

"She? Hang on, McGarrett, we don't know for sure that Gray had anything to do with this. How could she? She's in county lock up and getting moved to Halawa today. When would she get access to post this out?!"

"She could be getting help." Steve began stalking the living room, across and back, one ear on the the shower stream he could hear from upstairs. 

"Hey, it's probably one of the traffickers. And if that's the case they just did something really stupid and we can catch them with this. if not, it could be any local nut job who saw things on the news."

"No," Steve put in. "They'd have to know my address, and know Danny is with me. Only the ORC knew what was going on with us bonding. **She** did this. Somehow. Even the note…. let me see it," he reached a hand out and grabbed it from Lou, pointing to the first sentence again. "This person hates me and then talks about a real alpha. It's got to be her."

"We'll look into it. Or I will, with Jerry's help. Chin and Kono will stay on Jones and Lyons. I'm pissed off too that someone would try and mess with you and Danny like this while you're bonding. I'll find out who the bastard is. You need to stay with your boy, keep him close. Get those papers signed," Lou told him, calm in his voice as he tried to make sure Steve wouldn't go off the rails.

"Right, you're right. Danny's hormones are building, mine too, the bond is moving fast. And he's safer with me than anywhere else. Hold on," Steve held a finger up and grabbed for his now ringing phone, noticing the caller ID. "Hi Ellie, did you get my message?"

"Steve, you need to know something," she said, getting right to the point, voice low and serious.

"What is it? What's going on?"

"I'm at Halawa visiting a defen- it doesn't matter why I'm here. Look, just as I was leaving I heard that today's transport from county hasn't arrived yet and they can't get it to respond to radio checks. It's twenty minutes overdue. That doesn't seem like a big deal, it could be stuck in traffic."

"But you think it's more serious," Steve said without it being a question, his heart slowly sinking.

"It's the transport that Madison Gray is on. Steve, I think something's wrong."


	11. Chapter 11

"We need money," Gray told her hapless but mostly useful friend. "Your cousin who bailed you out. How flush is he?"

"He barely had enough to get me. We left another cousin still in there," Tyrone answered as they traipsed through the jungle on the side of the road, wary not to be seen by passers by as they walked back to where Tyrone had parked his stolen getaway vehicle. 

Gray knew they'd bring out the dogs to find her, but if they were quick enough, they'd get to the car and away and the trail would go cold. Tyrone had been ordered to park where there were no cameras and multiple possible routes away. She needed time to do what she wanted and couldn't risk being caught. "If we're to get off the island I need to pay the smugglers in cash," she paused for a moment then realized she would have to resort to her last option. Still, at this point, there was no reason not to. It wasn't like she could lose her job now- that was gone. 

Of course, everyone would know they were wrong as soon as she straightened things out. And her research was going to be game changing. She knew it. But until then she had to live with being an outcast.

"When I worked at the ORC I got approached by someone wanting tapes of the omegas being examined to put online. I guess plenty of people get off to the sight of omegas being helped to orgasm by doctors. I still have my recordings saved to the cloud so as long as your cousin has a laptop at his place, we can download and send them. Of course, Mannis was the middle man on that."

"He got arrested," Tyrone told her.

"I know," Gray responded. "I was there." She sighed as she pushed more branches out of her way. "Lucky for us, I got him to open up to me while we were being transported and I know who we need to contact to make the sale."

"I dunno. Five-0 made a ton of arrests. How do you know the guy you're looking for wasn't one of them?"

"Because he's too smart for them. He's been busy for years and they had no idea."

"So what's the plan? Make the deal, grab the prime, get off the island?"

"In simplistic terms, yes. Did you get to my stash like I asked?"

"Yeah. Syringes and little things of Nexus, just where you said they'd be."

"Good. I'll rid Danny of any notion of that military jackass being his alpha and he'll be mine for good."

*

Danny was limping in a more pronounced way again. Steve had accused him of putting it on to guilt him and Danny had simply given the evil eye and continued hunting for his walking stick. "You know it's your fault," Danny mumbled as he finally found it in the living room. 

"I was making sure you were okay," Steve told Danny for the thousandth time in the last ten minutes.

"Well, thanks to you, I'm not as okay as I could be," Danny walked closer, leaning heavily on the cane. He waved a finger in Steve's face. "Get your hormones under control."

"That's just it. You know it's my alpha bonding senses kicking in, so why are you so mad at me?!"

"Because I was in the shower! Barging in on a person who is naked, wet and standing somewhere they could slip and fall is never a good idea! You panicked me and jarred my knee when you made with the grabbing. And all of it was for no good reason!"

"A very good reason," Steve argued. "She's going to come after you… and you're fine."

"You don't even know she's actually escaped. Your friend could be wrong. And you also don't know the package was from her. It could be anything. You're jumping to conclusions because they fit how you want the narrative to go."

"The narrative?" Steve scoffed. "This isn't a story, Danny. This is real life. I'm working this case, all of my team is and this is the line of inquiry that makes sense! Besides, Duke called and confirmed that HPD found the prison transport and she and some other prisoners are on the run."

Danny sat on the arm of the sofa. "Okay, fine, so she's out. If she was smart, she'd find the first way off the island and disappear, not come after me. Five-0 is looking for her and she'd know that you'd try and get me into lock down as soon as you heard she was out. Coming after me is a ticket back to jail. She would know that."

"Except she's insane. You saw that message she wanted you to have. She's crazy and she's smart. She's going to risk it. But you're right, Five-0 is on this and I'm on you. She's not getting her hands on you while I'm by your side."

"You can't guard me forever," Danny reminded him. 

"Yes, I can. That would be my plan even if there wasn't a threat. I'm your alpha so it's my job."

"You're not my alpha yet," Danny put in since technically it was true. Right now, Steve was just his potential bond mate. As much as they began the bond in an instant, the full, natural bond would still take weeks as their hormone levels changed and adjusted as they grew closer. Until then, and until his father signed the papers, Steve was lawfully classed as just a suitor. Which Danny knew was one of the reasons Steve was taking everything with Gray's escape so badly. Steve was convinced she would continue to try and stake her claim before Steve and Danny cemented their bond. Once the two men sealed the deal, that was her window of opportunity gone. 

Though separations were possible, further bonds were weaker with each passing one. The first was important and for a prime, essential. Although Danny would always have omega children, it was a primary bond that could create further omega **primes** and that's what Gray wanted. She had to be the first person Danny ever bonded with or her grand ideas would be quashed.

"Danny, you're the most important person in my life. I've gone to the ends of the Earth for my friends before, I'd go further for you. That means I will not let anything happen to you," he sidled closer, moving Danny's cane out of the way and running his hands to Danny's hips. "You're stuck with me," he smiled, eliciting the same from Danny before he leaned in and captured his lips in a quick kiss. 

As their noses rubbed and breath mingled when they didn't fully part, Danny spoke in a hushed tone. "You still can't stay glued to my side, it would drive _me_ insane."

Steve groaned as he pulled back letting his head fall, unwilling to keep going round in circles. It was time to lay down the law - alpha to omega. It was shameless but it was what he had left. "Well, either you stay with me, or we visit the ORC. Since they have plenty of security you can stay safe in a room there and they would easily recognize Gray if she tried anything."

Danny was not happy with his options and knew he was stuck between a rock and a hard place. "If we're at Five-0's offices then we can both be useful," he tried.

"No, I'm not taking you there. The palace is mostly safe but there have been instances in the past. I don't want to risk it. We'd need to stay here."

"So my options are to go to a place I actively hate or stay here cooped up with you." Neither appealed at this point. The last thing Danny needed or wanted after his claustrophobia had flared recently - what with being stuck in the container and locking himself into the room at the ORC - was staying inside on what was essentially house arrest. "What about my parents? We can go to the Hilton. Besides, if you're right about Gray sending me that package then she knows where you live…"

"That's a good point," Steve admitted. He had been single minded, knowing the security at his house had been upgraded a bunch of times after events in the past and he could quietly station a squad car nearby to keep an eye on things in what was a quiet neighborhood. It would be obvious if anyone was trying something before they got within a hundred feet of the front door. But Danny's point was valid. Perhaps it would be best if they went somewhere more unexpected than the house or to Five-0. 

"My parents aren't going to be here for long. I know I said I was worried with them coming in but now that they're here I just want to be able to spend as much time with them as I can before they go. I'm not going to let **any** crazy alphas rob me of that."

"Okay we'll go to the Hilton. They have excellent security there, too."

*

"It just seems never-ending," Clara moaned as she rubbed Danny's back. They were sitting next to each other on the bed while the two alphas remained standing. 

"You were right to bring him here," Eddie told Steve. They had relayed everything to Danny's parents, not wanting to hide the seriousness of what was happening. Although Danny had argued not to worry them, Steve had wanted to make sure Eddie knew the stakes and, if anything, would be just as overcompensating as Steve in his protection detail. "I shudder to think what it could have been like back when Clara and I began courting. There was no such thing as primes back then, we had no idea why some omegas turned out to have all omega kids. These days, with science knowing things but unable to solve any of the big problems, well, it just seems more dangerous for omegas out there."

"I always worried for Danny. I thought getting him back and seeing him with a good alpha would allay my fears. Seems we don't get worry free lives for a while longer."

"You're all overreacting," Danny told them. "You think you have to go to extremes because I'm an omega but you don't need to. I can protect myself."

"The whole point is to avoid putting you in a position where you have to protect yourself. We don't dispute that you're capable," Steve responded. 

"We're on the 12th floor, there's cameras in the hallways, there's security downstairs looking for her. There's no way she's getting in here," Eddie said, reassuringly.

"Wait, hold on. I wanted to spend time with you but I didn't suggest that we come here so that you could keep me locked up in the room with guards around the place. Gray is out of prison so I have to be kept in one?" Danny's voice rose and he turned to his parents. "You know I get claustrophobic."

His father rounded on him, patience the first thing to go in his own worry. "This is a hotel room, Danny. A hell of a big one! You can't just pull the claustrophobia card whenever you don't like something. Especially when you're in a suite that's practically palatial."

"Eddie, you know Danny's fears are perfectly well founded," Clara warned her husband. "It's not always about the small space, it's about feeling helpless and unable to get out. Being trapped. There's a difference."

"Uh-huh," Eddie waved off the shrink talk they'd been instructed in when Danny was a kid. He walked out onto the balcony, Clara following to stop him mumbling about omegas trying to get their way all the time.

Steve sat next to Danny and knocked his shoulder to the omega's. "'Well founded' sounds like there's a story."

Danny took a moment to breathe and rubbed his hands together before starting. "When I was eight years old, maybe nine, the school bully decided that since I belonged to him - which I most definitely did not - that he would keep me in his locker like I was equivalent to his baseball cards or his gameboy or homework. He shoved me in before class one day. I was stuck in there for over an hour before a janitor heard me and let me out."

"Wow," Steve said as Danny trailed off.

"The janitor laughed. He thought it was cute. Todd didn't even get punished for it, just told to remember that I had to go to class, too. The school said it was just an alpha being an alpha and maybe if I didn't provoke him… I mean, I wasn't doing anything except saying no whenever he wanted anything from me! How is that provoking him?! We were kids!"

"Danny, I'm so sorry. It's no wonder you grew up hating alphas," Steve said, putting an arm around Danny's shoulders. At the mention of the name, he put two and two together and knew this was the kid Eddie had told him a little about before. A kid who grew up to be even more of an asshole and was definitely someone Steve was looking up once the case was closed. His mind raced through his own childhood memories - he knew he'd never been that kind of kid, but had he ever just stood aside while omegas at his school had been harassed? 

Danny continued, "it was the 80s. Everything that was happening back then made people wary about things getting on the evening news. They wrote everything off, hid it, fobbed off the parents," Danny snorted in derision. "Frankly, any of the phobias I have are down to that asshole. He's why I'm claustrophobic, why I hate swimming, why I hate ORCs and alphas, and why I ran. I mean, Billy needed me, we left together for a bunch of reasons. But I might have not been so keen if it wasn't for how Todd had been, harassing me about going to prom with him." He sighed. "Being a prime omega sucks. Hell, back then I was just a suspected prime and that was bad. You have no idea."

"When we have kids, one of them could be prime."

" _ **If**_ we have kids," Danny argued but at Steve's look he backed down. There was no way they wouldn't have kids and when Danny stopped to think about it, the idea did excite him. He knew Steve would be a good father. "Fine, _**when**_. It's just… my parents are good people. They were great and nurturing… encouraging. But shit still happened to all of us kids. I don't know how to protect my own children from that kind of crap."

"Maybe it's just not possible, but we're still gonna try our damnedest," Steve assured him as he clasped Danny's hand in his own. "Maybe we can spend some time downstairs at the pool It's only accessible for guests and I already alerted the hotel security - they've got Gray's picture and they said if Five-0 needed, they'd let us have dedicated guards."

"Urgh," Danny was about to moan further about being watched - it was something he'd been sensitive to his entire life, but for now it was a compromise. "You need to go to work."

"I don't want to leave you al-"

"I'm not alone. My parents are here and you just said hotel security is going to focus on this. I trust you to deal with this faster than anyone else. The sooner you get her back behind bars, the sooner we can get back to whatever's normal for us."

"He's right," Eddie said as he came back into the room. "You need to get these sons of bitches threatening my son and the bond you both have. We'll take care of things here."

"It's not that I don't respect you-"

"Stop right there. I can feel the 'but' coming and I suspect it'll be followed by a comment about my age," Eddie bristled. "I'll have you know that I may be coming up on retirement but I'm still an alpha. I've been a firefighter all my life. I'd like to see some of your cop buddies take me on in a fight, let alone this doctor woman."

Steve knew that acquiescing to Eddie was the right thing to do considering their statuses. "Okay, but I'm not happy about this," he said, finally being allowed to finish a sentence. 

"Of course you're not," Eddie told him. "I remember what it was like when bonding hormones were beginning to run rife through my body. But you've got to use that brain of yours and be sensible. Listen to your partner and your elders," he raised an eyebrow and waited for Steve to nod. 

"Take care of him," Steve said. "If you need anything, if you notice anything remotely out of the ordinary, you call me immediately."

"Yes, Commander," Eddie mock saluted and Steve noticed for the first time how much of Danny's nature was just as much from his alpha father as it was from his omega prime mother. 

He reached for Danny's hand, pulling him up to stand and they walked together to the door. The suite was sizable and had three different rooms. Danny's parents took the hint and disappeared into the master bedroom to give them some privacy. 

Steve ran his hands up Danny's arms. "I hate leaving you. Especially now."

"What did dad just say? You gotta keep that primal brain of yours in check," Danny raised an eyebrow.

Steve looked down over Danny, a grin ghosting onto his face. "It's the other part of my primal brain that wants to stay. I'm gonna miss seeing you in just a pair of swim shorts lying by the pool in the hot sun, watching you come out of the pool dripping wet…" he ran his hands up Danny's back. "Getting to rub lotion over your back."

"Ah, _**that**_ part of the brain," Danny smiled, vocal air quotes around the word 'brain'. "If it's any consolation, I feel the same. I'd quite enjoy seeing you in just a pair of shorts."

They swayed a little in each others' arms. "Good job my backyard leads to the ocean." Steve leaned in for a kiss - two pecks to Danny's lips but Steve wasn't satisfied by them and for the third kiss he pulled Danny flush to his body, almost lifting him off his feet as he kissed him harder, open, wet, licking into Danny's mouth and against his tongue. One hand slipped low to Danny's ass while the other moved higher to cup the back of his neck and hold him steady while he all but attacked Danny's mouth. 

As they parted, one let out a low growl from the back of the throat, while the other whined as he sucked in a deep breath. 

"I don't have to go," Steve whispered. "There's a second bedroom. I can make you forget the claustrophobia," he pressed his hips forward to jut against Danny's.

The omega cleared his throat. "You have a good reason to go. You can hold out until tonight. Think of it as motivation to get the bitch back behind bars sooner."

"You need anything, you call."

"Yes, sir, Commander, _sir_ ," Danny replied with a wink, already knowing exactly how to tease Steve after such a short time of knowing each other.

*

It had been fun for a while. Danny had laid back in a sun lounger. He and his mom had a few cocktails, his father had been in the pool. 

After a while, Danny began to notice things. He may not be trained, but he'd relied heavily on advice from the OLP when he'd disappeared and he'd read a lot about how to avoid tails, how to spot things that weren't quite right. 

So he'd clocked the two plain clothes security guys sitting at the bar in board shorts and Hawaiian shirts. He'd noticed that the other security guards in their white polo shirts were making a lot of passes around the pool area. Hell, even the lifeguards seemed to split their time watching the water and watching the surrounding area (and Danny) like they'd been informed to keep a watchful eye for anything. 

Some people would think it was a load off - other people doing the watching so Danny didn't have to. Instead it made him feel uneasy and nervous. It made it seem like the threat was bigger than it was. There was no way Gray knew he was here. Surely it was a one in a million shot if she did, considering Honolulu was a big enough city and Steve could have squirreled Danny away in a safe house anywhere on the island. But he still believed she'd be too busy saving her own skin to worry about getting her hands on Danny's.

Alphas.

He sighed as he drained the last of his Mai Tai and put the glass aside. 

Alphas were everywhere. Watching him. Just the exact thing he hated. The exact thing he'd never wanted and avoided his entire adult life. it was just as uncomfortable as he'd imagined, even if they were supposedly doing it to protect him. He needed a change of scene.

He stood and limped to where Eddie was sitting on the edge of the pool. His father squinted up to him. "You coming in?"

"I'm hungry, pop. Ma might be able to live on pina coladas but some of us need actual food. You need to get out of there for a bit anyway - you're starting to prune."

"I never knew you were so bossy, Daniel," Eddie told him with an indulgent eye roll. 

"It's the omega in me," Danny shrugged. 

"Just order something from the pool bar. I saw earlier that they do food."

"No, come on, pop. I'm not going to eat on my lap while in swimwear and squinting because the sun is so bright. We need to go somewhere we can sit down at a table like civilized people."

"I'm not so sure that's a good idea," Eddie began but Danny could tell he was faltering. Firefighters liked to eat and he knew his father was also the kind of guy who wasn't keen on TV dinners. He was the one who influenced Danny growing up into believing that dinner was a family affair done at a table where there were few distractions and you could all talk and be a family together.

Danny leaned down, wincing slightly at the pull on his damaged knee. "This hotel is huge. It's practically it's own city. We won't go far, we'll still be at the hotel, but it'll be good to go for a walk and a decent sit down somewhere. There's a small coffee place just across the way, I've heard good things about it," well, he had eavesdropped earlier and heard a couple _mention_ the place. He had no idea if it was decent or not.

"What does your mother say about it all?"

"Real food, pop," Danny reiterated, ignoring the question since he had no answer for it.

"Fine, just give me a second to get dried off. But we're not going far and I'm going to stop by the front desk to let security know what's going on."

*

A short while later, they were walking through the lobby and had halted while Eddie stayed true to his word that he wanted to speak to security first. 

Danny had just put a t-shirt on as he hadn't gone swimming so his trunks were dry. His mother had put a sarong dress thing on top of her swimsuit and was wearing a big hat, while Eddie had gone to the shower and used the cover to change his shorts over and, like Danny, had a t-shirt on. Both men looked so similar you could tell they were father and son - the only difference was that Danny was the one hobbling with a cane. 

Lunch was a simple affair and all had enjoyed it. Danny was feeling vindicated in knowing that they were perfectly safe to wander around the large hotel property and it's mall-like shopping and dining district without any harm coming to him. 

But he was wrong. 

Just as they were about to cross a service road near the front of the complex, a panel van pulled to a halt and three big alphas got out. All male. Clara screamed and used her bag to try and fend one off but it was useless. Eddie fought off two but when he took a bad punch to the solar plexus and doubled over, his face was met with a knee and he was badly disoriented. Looking up he saw two things - his wife in trouble, and his son unconscious and being dragged to the back of the van. He didn't know who to help but it didn't even matter. The blow he'd taken meant he stumbled and fell to the ground before being able to get to either of them. 

In the next moment Danny was gone, Clara was in tears and Eddie was crawling to her while security came rushing to help. Too late.

*

"Hey Chin," Steve greeted the native alphas as he returned to HQ. "Is Kono okay on her own?"

"She's fine. She'd be more insulted if you didn't think her capable of handing Agent Jones' back up herself."

"It's not ideal. I know we're stretched right now and I know that the case against Lyons is where priority would lie but with Gray escaping I have to have our people on this. I can't risk Danny's safety to HPD and the Prison service alone."

Chin clapped a hand onto Steve's back. "Hey man, it makes perfect sense. If our positions were reversed I'd do the same thing." Chin, like Steve, had always dated betas. Hell, he'd married one. It was one of those things that made Steve wonder if Catherine's leaving was just a pothole in the road and maybe one day more would come of that relationship. If Chin could forgive Malia for all the crap she'd put him through then maybe he could do the same with Cath. Now he realized that what he'd thought was love was all just friendship and fun and didn't go below the surface. Now he knew a real love and any relationship he'd had in the past paled in comparison. 

Maybe Chin would meet an omega - or another beta - one day and maybe the grief of losing Malia at Delano's hand would fade. He didn't doubt that Malia was important to Chin. He just hoped the other alpha would be able to move on one day and find someone new to love. He deserved it. 

"Lou and Jerry went to County to review security tapes and logs. I asked for copies of everything related to Madison Gray. Maybe she had a visitor we can talk to. Maybe something was planned."

"I take it this wasn't an opportunistic escape then?"

"No, it looks orchestrated. And not by the other escapees. They didn't have the means or the intellect for this. It was planned somehow and she needed outside help."

"So we're looking for more than just her."

Steve nodded. He'd been hard at it since the morning. He'd visited the scene with Lou before they separated. Once back at the office, he'd gone through the other felons' backgrounds. Although he knew in his gut that they had run because they could and lucked out with Gray's planning, he needed to make sure they weren't involved somehow. Now he was waiting on Lou and Jerry to gather everything from county. He was convinced what they needed was in those records.

His phone rang and he barely even began the word 'hello' when he registered the panic in Eddie's voice at the other end of the line. 

He grabbed for Chin's arm, knowing he'd need the other alpha for support as he listened to what had happened.

"How?" Steve all but yelled into the phone. "All the security. Staying inside the hotel, you were supposed to-"

"I'm sorry, Steve. You have no idea. He's my son and I failed him, again. We just went to get something to eat." The man on the other end of the phone was falling apart, it was obvious in his tone. Steve knew Eddie would be in tears before long as the emotions hit him. Right now he sounded wrung out, stressed. "I tried to stop them, there were too many."

"How many?" Steve transferred his phone to the table top computer so that Chin could hear. The other alpha was listening as he also called Lou. And he was alerting HPD through the computer though no doubt the hotel security were also working hard on this. 

"Three guys and one driver. Big guys. Hired thugs I'd wager."

Steve wiped a hand down his face. Terror was gripping his heart as it tried to beat out of his chest. He could barely believe what he was hearing and though he was going into SEAL mode, locking everything down and getting the facts, getting the job done… he was falling apart inside. She'd got hold of his Danny.

"How could she hire anyone?" Steve asked, talking to himself more than anything to work through the problem. "She had nothing while in jail. How could she get cash to hire guys in less than five hours?"

"When we find her, we'll ask her," Chin told him, determined, a strong presence at Steve's side.

"When we find her, I'm shooting her," Steve replied, even more determined.

*

Danny had come to in the back of the van, too late to do anything to try and escape or make his presence known to other road users. Now, he was in a house, in the basement. And he sat, cuffed with hands behind his back and each ankle had been tied with rope to a leg of the chair.

"Pretty sure a true pairing wouldn't need to have one of them tied up to keep them from leaving," Danny told her as she wandered around the badly lit, damp smelling room.

"Oh, darling, don't worry. We'll get rid of the bond that McGarrett has been forcing on you and let the true one emerge. Now that we're together it'll have a real chance to form."

"You're delusional. How did you - or your goons - even find me?"

"It's obvious really. You weren't with McGarrett, so I figured you'd be with your parents."

"Why not a safe house?"

"I knew your parents were coming into town to sign you over to McGarrett. You haven't seen them in two decades, I knew you'd refuse to be anywhere else. Omegas prize family about all else," she said, stating what she thought was obvious. "And the ORC always puts visitors up at the Hilton. It was a no-brainer. Frankly, everything played into my hands. Which is perfect."

"What are you going to do?"

She pulled an identical chair up in front of him and sat. "I'm going to re-educate that little omega brain of yours. We'll spend some time together. Your bond with McGarrett will wither and ours will blossom."

"That's not possible."

"With a little chemical help it is. It'll make you see who your true alpha is."

Danny swallowed a lump in his throat. "Nexus," he said, knowing where she was going. "You're going to use that crap on me." Nexus was an omega's worst fear. A drug that was going to force a bond they didn't want. It was barbaric. It was banned in several countries or was strictly controlled in its usage. Even so, the people who invented it did so by accident and had publicly spoken about how they regretted it. It was akin to slavery - a way to force an omega into a life of servitude to an alpha who got to hold all the power.

"It's just to speed things up a little," she told him like it was no big deal. "We don't have forever and we need to get off the island and escape that crazed military man and his cronies who think they run this island. Well they don't. They tried to keep us apart but it won't work. I have you back and once I get his stench off you we'll be free to bond and get started on my greatest work. _Together_. Don't you want that?"

"Not even a little bit."

"That's the brainwashing talking. McGarrett has a lot to answer for," she reached for him, running a hand through his hair and over his cheek. "He's poison. I hate him with every fiber of my being for what he did to us. He'll pay, I promise."

"You made a mistake grabbing me. Just like you make a mistake sending that package this morning. it just made him angry. I'd hate to be you when he catches up."

She frowned. "What package?"

He knew she was lying. "The one with the fake cum supposed to freak us out. It didn't work. We laughed about how stupid you are."

"I sent no package," she said, ignoring his jibes for the moment. 

"That was funny," Danny had barely registered the other person in the room, but in the shadows by the steps was a big brute of a guy and as he heard him speaking he recognized him as one of the big alpha orderlies from the ORC who had held him in place while Gray had… He was one of the guys who was beaten up by an almost feral Steve and had been arrested. "We got a kick out of that."

"Who's 'we'?" Gray asked, sounding like she didn't like where things were going.

"I told you. My cousin in jail. The one who's still there that we had to leave 'cause we couldn't both be bailed out." Ah, so this guy was out on bail. Maybe that would help Five-0 find Danny quicker? "We were talking. Thought it might scare the little omega bitch."

"Yeah, well, it didn't. I wasn't fooled for a second," Danny snorted.

"Hold on," Gray said, standing and moving towards the guy. "Tyrone, you went to see your cousin in jail? While you were on bail? While you were still working on getting me out? And you came up with some stupid idea to send a package to Danny? Do you realize how stupid that was?!" Her voice rose until she was yelling at the end, which made Danny realize how futile it would be for him to yell for help if she had no qualms about making any noise. Maybe they were somewhere remote.

"It was just a joke," Tyrone reasoned. 

She grabbed him by the ear then slapped him. The guy was big enough to take her in a fight but he had enough fear of her as his boss that he didn't fight back. "You idiot. If you touched that package, if you left something on it, they can trace it. They'll work out it was you and trace you back to me. They'll know you were the one to help get me out and my plan will fall apart much quicker than expected." She began to pace. "This cousin of yours… why is he in jail?"

"Human trafficking," Tyrone answered, contrite.

She slowly turned to him again, rage evident but keeping a calm facade. If it weren't for the fact that he was tied up and no one knew where he was except for an unhinged psychopath and her stupid flunky, Danny would be enjoying the show.

"Do you mean to tell me. That your cousin. Is one of those who Five-0 and HPD caught. As part of the omega smuggling ring. That brought Danny to the island?!?"

"Uh, maybe?"

"Imbecile!" She resumed her pacing and ran both hands over her face "Why did I think using you to help was a good idea?"

"So we leave a little quicker. It's no big deal. We were going to get the smugglers to get us off the island, that hasn't changed. It's just sooner."

"Except I was supposed to have a docile omega bound to me by the time we left. I was supposed to have had time to get more money so we could afford to keep the smugglers happy. Neither of which I have right now and as much as I hate Five-0, they're not stupid like you are. We can't afford to underestimate them."

"Can't you sell more videos of naked omegas like you did before?" Danny perked at the question. His fears about cameras, about poor omegas being watched and used by doctors… they were true. God knows how long Gray had been taking advantage of omegas at the ORC. And now she was keeping footage in a private collection and selling them on?? Was Danny among them from when she'd....?

"I only have one more batch. It'll get us out sooner but we won't have much money for on the other side of the trip. But that's a bridge we can cross later. Right now I need my omega to be ready," she stared at him. 

"What are you going to do?" Danny asked, scared again now the attention was back on him. 

"I guess you're going to have to be useful for research sooner than you thought," she told him. "We speed things up. A higher dose."

"You can't! it's dangerous!" Danny tried.

"It won't kill you, just the bonds you have," she scoffed but Danny knew she was doing this based on flimsy, crazy hopes, not actual science. "Think of it as a clean slate. A faster one. Then you and I can start again," she emptied a whole vial into a syringe. 

Danny didn't know much about Nexus, but he knew enough to know that what was in that thing was way more than normal. When she stuck the needle in his arm and emptied it all into him, he knew he was in serious trouble.


	12. Chapter 12

Steve was on the verge of destroying his own office. He'd lost count of the amount of times he'd had to lower his fists to stop himself punching the wall, the desk or the window. His heart wouldn't stop relentlessly beating to break out from behind his rib cage as the worry refused to dissipate. They needed to be smart, they needed to make sure nothing slipped through the cracks that could affect finding Danny. They needed to be fast - that wasn't in doubt. But they needed to be thorough and accurate. 

"She was clever," Lou had said earlier. "She made sure to have her lawyer get a lot of visitors in for her and it's made it more difficult for us." 

Jerry had started looking for coded messages and was analyzing the video for body language clues or anything that could help. Chin had gone to check in with Kono on Agent Jones' progress on their 'main' case before going to help Jerry, while Lou was looking into Gray's full background for any property she owned or any family she had that might help her out. Steve had followed up with the ORC to delve more into Gray's professional life. Everything he'd read sounded squeaky clean but as he read her thesis and other work, knowing her now as he did, there was always a sinister edge to it that made him bristle. It sounded uncaring towards omegas as it centered on what alphas needed, not the omegas.

As Steve finished on the phone with Duke getting an update on the HPD side of things (and discovering that they'd already apprehended one of the other two escapees who, alas, had just taken advantage of the opportunity and knew nothing of Gray's plans), Chin and Jerry reappeared and strode with purpose towards the computer table. Seeing this made Steve leave his office and head in their direction, summoning Lou from his as he passed. 

"I think I have something," Jerry began as he pulled information from his tablet onto the big screen. Up popped a display with 9 different DMV photos. "These are all the people who visited Gray. In just two days, this should have raised flags somewhere. Notice anyone in particular?" he asked Steve. 

Steve looked at the screen carefully, willing someone to pop out at him but knowing they were pushed for time he didn't want to play games. "Not off-hand."

Jerry focused on one specific person and enlarged it. "Tyrone Alana."

Steve had his arms crossed but he lifted a finger to point at the screen as he scrutinized it. "Wait, he does look familiar."

"You probably forgot because you saw him when you were all alpha crazy a couple days ago and practically feral," Jerry said and Steve shot him a look.  "Not that there's anything wrong with that, you had an omega in distress so.... anyway... yeah, Tyrone is one of the orderlies at the ORC. Former orderly. He was arrested with Gray for what happened to Daniel Williams."

"And he's out? How?" Steve asked, voice stern. 

"Bail," Lou replied, sounding like he thought it was wrong that it happened, but he was much better at keeping his disgust in check than Steve. "You said his last name is Alana? How popular is that in Hawaii? Is it like Smith or...?"

Chin waved his head from side to side as he considered it. "It's pretty normal but not common. Why?"

"It rings a bell, give me a second," Lou said as he took over from Jerry and began working on the computer. As Lou hunched over the table and brought up various lists, Jerry and Steve both got curious and tried to look at what he was doing until he suddenly stood straight again. "Aha! " he said in triumph. "Alana. One of the traffickers we took in had the same last name."

Chin's phone rang and he excused himself to answer it.

"So we have Mannis at the security desk at the ORC who was working for Lyons, and now we know one of the orderlies maybe had links to one of Lyons' guys. Is that a coincidence?"

"I doubt it," Lou said. 

"I agree," Chin said as he hung up the phone. "Mainly because I know for a fact it's not. That was Charlie Fong. He's got a fingerprint match from the letter sent to Danny this morning and you'll never guess who touched the envelope," he said as he pointed to the screen.

"Tyrone Alana. On whose orders? Gray or Lyons?" Steve asked. 

"That much we don't know. But is it possible that Gray is also mixed up with Lyons somehow?" Lou asked. 

"If she is, she could be the key to bringing him down. Chin, how did Kono say things were going over there?"

"Lyons seemed squirrely but pleased about something non work related. Agent Jones is sure it was about money. She's been trying to get access to his private bank accounts to see what's so interesting. They were worried he might be preparing to get off the island."

"Tell them to keep trying and to investigate a list of all emails going into his work and private addresses for anything the looks like it could be from Gray or from Alana. Jerry, see if Tyrone also visited this other Alana in lock up, verify any substantial link. And get your hands on the footage of everywhere he went while at the prison; behind bars and visiting. I want to know everything, especially if it relates to Danny. Lou, get us Tyrone Alana's last known address and then you and Chin get suited up and alert HPD. It's likely that Gray is holed up with him. Let's go."

*

Not much had happened at first. Danny began to wonder how he'd know the drug was kicking in. Just as he was thinking he was feeling dizzy, there was a stab of pain behind his eyes, his head began to pound like his brain was being crushed and he began to sweat with a fever. 

He was beginning to see everything with a golden haze that occasionally whited out. He saw spots like he had looked too closely at the sun. It was like the worst migraine anyone had ever experienced and it made him cry out and whimper in distress. 

Looking around was disorienting. He struggled to see clearly and that was affecting his balance. If he hadn't been tied to the chair he was sure he would have fallen off it. Maybe he'd prefer that. He just wanted to curl up in a ball on the floor and wait for the world to stop spinning and for the lancing pain in his head to stop.

His skin prickled like he had pins and needles but there was an edge to it of want and need. Of _heat_. His body was entirely out of whack and it all hurt. He was being tricked into early heat by the drug and he worried about what that might do to his mind.

He wanted to throw up.

Tyrone held a bucket underneath his mouth the few times he'd begun to heave but so far he'd kept the contents of his stomach down. 

He knew the drug was fighting and it was strong. Through the pain he was hyper aware that there were two alphas in the room and a sliver of his brain function was already feeling for the possibility of a bond despite the one he already had. A Nexus induced heat was not like a natural one which occurred after a bond began forming and focused on that one alpha (or beta, albeit those bonds were low key). Instead, Nexus produced a heat first and to compensate, the mind of the omega would seek out any available alpha in the vicinity and try to bond with them. The drug gave unscrupulous alphas all the power while an omega lost control. 

And Danny had been given a super large dose, while already bonding. If the pain was a result of that, it might help him to focus away from the heat and other potential bonds and could be where Gray made a mistake. But he was still stuck between a rock and a hard place and he'd rather hurt than be landed with Gray as a bond mate for life, regardless.

He didn't trust his feelings, he just repeatedly reminded himself what was real. He tried to lose himself in distracting thoughts of what he'd felt that morning and concentrated on it. Concentrated on _**Steve**_ , seeing him in his mind's eye and ignoring the dank basement and the doctor and the lackey. He needed his brain to remember they were repugnant to him and yet something inside him didn't seem to care. It just screamed out for an alpha, _any alpha_ , to complete a bond with before his body's desperate need got too much. 

When he felt hands on his legs it made him shiver. He watched through the haze in his eyes as Gray's hands stroked up his thighs and he knew that if the pain in his head wasn't so severe then he'd be very tempted to moan for her to touch him more. He let out a gurgled laugh. It leant a whole new meaning to the phrase 'not tonight dear, I have a headache'.

"It can't be hurting much anymore if you can laugh, darling," she said to him in a deceptively lilting tone. "Tell me how you're feeling," she said and only then did he realize that Tyrone was holding up a camera and recording what was happening. 

"Go to hell," Danny ground out.

"That's not very nice," she told him. "Tyrone, zoom in on his eyes," she said as she documented things. "Before I administered the Nexus, there was a marked change in the hue of his irises to a sky blue with pinpricks of gold and silver. Now the drug has taken hold, the irises have begun to revert to a pure golden state. I believe that the high dosage is the reason the whites of his eyes are also golden as well as the way the veins underneath the skin seem to be tinged with yellow. I'm seeing occasional sparks like lightning crossing over his eyes. Danny, can you perceive those?"

"Yes," he ground out as another one sparked and made him blink, eyes watering each time it happened and the pain spiking through his head. He listened to every one of her words. Something about her voice was alluring but he knew that was the drug. He was much more concerned with listening to how he was physically changing and if something might be permanent.

"Interesting. Omegas go their whole lives without any awareness of the the way their eyes change and yet with Nexus it has been proven to affect their vision before. Again, the extent of what he sees must be in relation to the high dosage. I do believe the speed of the reversion is also thanks to the level of the drug in his blood stream which is exactly what I wanted."

"You didn't mention the pain," Danny bit down on his lower lip. "It can't be normal."

"Like childbirth, the pain is temporary, my dear. Omegas have a high pain threshold, you'll be fine."

"Bitch," he said at her indifference.

She stayed crouched in front of him, a small smile played on her lips as her hands continued to caress over the bare skin of his legs, fingertips heading under the material of his shorts with every upward stroke. She then let one hand slip down to his groin over the material. His legs weren't wide apart but it was enough for her to touch over him, feeling and massaging. 

She then stood and moved behind him, never letting her hands leave his body as they moved over his t-shirt clad chest. With a display of strength she grabbed the material at the neck and ripped it open all the way to the waist. Running her hands over his skin she dipped lower to the waistband of his shorts, her head resting on his shoulder and looking down his body. 

Her hand went under his remaining clothes, seeking out his dick and below to his clit and vagina. Danny sucked in a breath. Part of him still whispered in a corner of his brain that he liked it and wanted more and he did everything he could to ignore it and not connect with her despite the pleasure she could illicit cutting through his pain. 

She hummed as her finger circled over his clit. "You're getting wet, Danny. Desperate for an alpha. Soon, my dear. Soon I'll complete our bond. I just want you fully purged of that bastard Navy cop before I take you."

"Why don't you just get him off and we can sell it to the porn guys?" Tyrone asked as he continued filming. "We need more money right?"

"That's right," she said, pondering. "It's not a bad idea. And besides, if the Nexus doesn't work as fast as I'd like, I could try another angle."

"What's that?" Danny asked, hitching in another breath as she pushed a finger inside him, crooking and playing with the wetness.

"Me getting you to orgasm rather than any other alpha might encourage you to forget them. Your little omega brain will know what's right if I give it to you." She pulled her finger out and stood up, wiping the digit on the remains of his shirt. "But first, Tyrone is right about us needing that cash. We'll go see what I have left to sell and if it's not enough then at least I know I've got an endless supply with you, my dear. And I'm not so precious that I won't share you… not once I have what I want."

"Fuck you," Danny said, but his voice didn't hold the sting he'd have hoped as he was overcome with a wave of dizziness at just that moment; physical desires forgotten as she moved away from him and the pain returned full force. The longer she stayed away from him the better - proximity was clearly important and maybe more obvious the more drugged you were. He knew if she simply stayed near and kept touching him he'd succumb but he needed to make sure she stayed unaware of that fact.

As she left, Danny began to pull at the cuffs behind him. While he was alone, and despite the headache and the wooziness and the vision problems, he did know of a trick that could help him. He just wasn't used to trying it when the cuffs were behind his back. 

And honestly? He only had a 50/50 success rate with it. 

But if ever there was a time when he needed to be able to slip a pair of handcuffs it was now. Billy had been really good at this one, he just had to channel his best friend and hope it worked. 

He winced as the cuffs kept biting into his wrists and how his already damaged shoulder ached as he tried to change positions. But he wasn't giving up.

*

Joined by SWAT and HPD, Five-0 had raided Tyrone Alana's run down apartment. Ignoring the looks of the rubberneckers nearby, amidst the shouting of the police it was discovered that the apartment was empty. 

Chin led HPD with Duke as they surveyed the apartment for any clues as to where the former orderly had gone, where he might hang out, or where he'd been recently that they could track. 

Steve had left as soon as the failure was evident. Outside the apartment he leaned heavily on the concrete wall, fingers digging into his eyeballs in frustration when he wasn't banging balled up fists against any solid surface.

He fell into a moment of despair, his entire mind blank of what to do. Panic was allowed to settle in and all his training went out the window. Fears of Gray escaping the island with Danny in tow wreaked havoc with his brain. 

A solid, warm hand settled on his bicep and he turned to see Lou standing there, concern evident. "Pull yourself together, McGarrett. Panicking doesn't help him."

"I know. You're right," Steve agreed, standing straight and putting his hands on his hips to stop them fidgeting. "We go back. We find another angle."

"I already got one for you. Jerry called, he said the Alana we put in jail for human trafficking is this guy's cousin. We looked into an address for him and got something interesting. Another cousin he'd been staying with. Get this, it's the guy who bailed out Tyrone. He's also got a shady past, mostly minor offenses. He's got a place further out of Honolulu, somewhere with less neighbors and it's not too far from where the prison transport was intercepted."

"That's the one. Gray must have taken Danny there. Tell everyone to pack up, we're heading out!"

*

He'd come close, and the frustration was making it take longer especially when he lost patience and became angry at himself. The cuffs stayed firmly in place and he was beginning to think the only hope he'd have would be to dislocate his shoulder again. So he was still trapped in the same position when Gray and Tyrone reappeared, his mind more aware of their presence than his sight.

The mad doctor strode closer, hands ready to prod and poke at him, dispassionate and uncaring for his discomfort. She held his eyes open as she peered at the coloring, noting that they were holding the reversed golden color but there were still occasional sparks and dots that indicated the bond he had with Steve was still hanging on. If Danny had any say in it, if his own stubbornness could hold back the effects of the drug, then he'd continue to fight, but maybe he could convince her that his eyes were no real indicator and he could get her to uncuff him. A change of scenery might prove easier to escape from. And if she thought he was on board, then she might let her guard down.

He trusted that Steve and the team would be pulling out the stops to come find him and he knew in his gut that they would. He couldn't afford to think anything else. As much as he hated to do so, he had to let that sliver of need in his head take hold. The part that wanted and needed any alpha within range to bond with him. The part that was turned on by her, even if it truly made him recoil. The part that filled him with guilt even if his current desires were influenced by chemical manipulation.

"Doc, it's okay. Please... I know what I want."

"And what is that?"

"You. I want you. We can bond, we can get away from here. I just... if you give me something for the pain it'll help put me in the mood." He didn't want her touching him, but did at the same time, it would be so easy to just... No, he had to listen to his brain not his body. 

Her hand stroked down his face as her head tilted, gauging him. "Talk to me, darling," she encouraged.

"It's... I need..." he played to the pain, hoping she would buy it but the confusion inside him was real. As she touched him, those desires were burning within him for more. "It's hot, I'm burning up. I'm ready, I swear I am, please. Please untie me, we can go somewhere better than a basement, we can do this right. You can touch me, you can fuck me, you can fill me up. I want… fuck, I need an alpha."

As she pushed his head back into the light again she hummed in disappointment.  It was clear that she wanted him to be completely clean before forcing her own bond on him and wasn't happy enough with how he looked - without a solid eye color she wouldn't be satisfied. That was how she could guarantee a pure bond untainted by others that still lurked. Her cracked mind was only interested in her own gain and Danny was simply a rag doll and a breeder for her. Nothing more than a slave. No matter what he felt, needed or said, everything would be her decision. There was a cruel streak inside of her that was clearly given much more freedom since she'd snapped and gone crazy. But she was still smart and savvy.

"Danny," she began as she ran a finger down his chest. "Nice try. But on the off chance that you are telling me some truth, you'll be pleased to know that what happens next will benefit you in more ways than one. Not only will your wet pussy experience overwhelmingly amazing orgasms thanks to me, but we'll be able to make the money we need to settle elsewhere by filming it for my porn contacts. The internet will love you. A runaway omega finally caught who always says no but really means yes? There are plenty of horny alphas sitting in their homes who want to jack themselves off to the sight of you coming over and over again, desperate for an alpha's touch after all these years."

"You're a psycho," he told her, almost mesmerized by how insane she had become. He'd always had a gut feeling about her but how she could become so unhinged over the course of a few days was ridiculous. 

"You flatter me," she said sarcastically. "I liked you better when you were begging me for my touch," she continued as she reached for the waistband of Danny's shorts and began to pull them and his underwear down. Tied as he was, Danny couldn't fight her and after maneuvering the material down to his ankles, she prodded his knees as wide as they would go. She used a finger to wipe some of his wetness up and showed it to him. "Nice and slick for me. You might try and deny you want me, you might even believe it, but your body says otherwise."

"That's the Nexus and you know it," Danny growled at her even as he shivered because the drug was working. He could try and close his legs but he didn't even bother. He _wanted_ her to keep touching him and it was getting more difficult to fight what his body craved.

She rubbed hard over his clit in circular motions and made his breath hitch and his chest tighten as his body enjoyed the sensation. That annoying part of his brain that wanted her - wanted any alpha - was happy to let her continue as his head tilted back and his hips moved with her. She stroked his now hard dick and smiled.

"Not yet," she patted his groin and wiped her fingers on his bare thigh. "The internet wants to see you really yelling for more. I've got just the perfect little vibrator in my bag that will drive you so crazy you'll never stop coming. Tyrone," she turned to the lackey. "Set up the camera. I'll be back in a minute."

As she went up the stairs, the other alpha ramped up the production value by sorting a tripod for a second camera that would stay in place while he used a handheld.

Danny heaved in deep breaths, willing his body to listen to him. The last thing he wanted was what she was offering, in every way possible. He renewed his efforts with the cuffs though he had to be careful and hide what he was doing. He wrenched his shoulder back so far that it felt fit to pop again and he covered his movements with a cough and acted like he was having another dizzy spell - though it wasn't entirely faked. 

He felt at the edge of one end of cuff and he bit down on his lip to stop himself exclaiming. It had worked! Finally! 

Carefully he was able to widen the metal on one wrist until his hand could slip free. With his legs still bound to the chair by the ankles he knew he couldn't celebrate freedom yet. What he'd managed was still just the first step though it was the most important. 

His heart began to beat wildly again at the possibility of escape. He didn't have long - Gray would return soon ready to abuse his body. When Tyrone turned his back to Danny, the omega took the opportunity to lean forward and loosen the binds on his legs, but he was only able to get the knots undone before Tyrone had him in his line of sight again. 

He had an idea. 

He sat back and widened his legs more. He moaned, putting as much of a seductive lilt into his voice as possible, with that hint of desperation for an alpha, for sex. It worked to get Tyrone's attention on him, the eyes of the alpha drawn to Danny's wet and open pussy.

"The camera should be closer," Danny said, puffing his chest up to show off his muscles and undulating his hips as he sat, trying to look alluring. "People watching on small screens need to see the money shot close up. I hope she hurries, I need it so bad," he said and let his head fall back as he pushed his butt up from the seat and gave Tyrone more of a show.

The alpha licked his lips and heeded Danny's words. He brought the camera closer, he stood behind it, getting his eye pressed right up to the viewfinder to watch what was being recorded, glued to the zoomed in sight of Danny's dick and wet vagina.

That was when Danny pounced. He pushed to his feet despite still being loosely attached to the chair legs and he swung his arms around. He made a grab for Tyrone, managing to get on the big alpha's back with his hands around his throat and tightening the ends of the cuffs like a noose. 

Tyrone fought, trying to reach round for Danny but his airways were cut off by the metal chain and he struggled to breathe. Danny could feel the bite of the cuff still around his wrist as it dug further into raw skin and began to bleed all over Tyrone's neck. His other hand just pulled tighter because now he knew he was fighting for his life again. 

As the alpha dropped to his knees and then face planted onto the floor, Danny was able to finish releasing himself fro the binds around the chair legs. He pulled up his shorts but shucked the now ratty t-shirt and threw it aside. He was sure Tyrone was out for the count at least long enough for him to get away but to be sure, he kicked the guy in the nuts. Hard. 

When there was no reaction, he smiled in satisfaction and dragged the man out of the line of sight.

Then he noticed the camera. Unsure what might happen next, he took the extra seconds to open up the compartment and steal the memory card from inside it, pocketing it quickly. Those seconds had been precious indeed because he could hear Gray coming closer to the door at the top of the stairs. 

He hung back, hid in the shadows under the stairs and waited, listening to her footsteps and the pounding of the blood in his ears. There was a ripple of desire through him as soon as she was close enough. Just as she was realizing something was wrong, he grabbed the chair and swung it at her with all his might. It was enough to daze her and knock her to the ground and he seized his chance to run. 

He bolted for the stairs, taking them two at a time, bad knee forgotten in the midst of other aches. A hand grabbed for his good leg and he tripped, falling. 

He kicked out, hitting her in the face hard enough that she let go with a yell of anger and he was able to pick himself up and start running again despite the disorientation that he wasn't sure was due to the Nexus swimming in his veins or the shock from fighting with what little energy he had left in him.

Once upstairs he simply ran to wherever he felt the light of day was coming from. A quick glance led him to what must be a front door and he thanked God and Fate and everything in the cosmos that it was unlocked as he yanked it open.

He had no idea where he was, and he knew he really should stay clear of all alphas, but he had to keep going and run for safety because anything was better than where he'd been. As he rounded the side of the house he yelled out for help, risking the possibilities of who might discover him.

*

Steve pulled his truck up haphazardly at the side of the road close to where the house was. They didn't want to spook anyone inside with lights and sirens and he knew their best bet was to take the place by surprise. 

As the others along with HPD pulled up nearby, Steve was already out of the truck and ready to bark orders. Danny was the priority, his rescue was important, in which case they needed any informants alive. Gray was dangerous and mad - they had no idea what she might do so they had to be careful. 

He was about to tell everyone to move out and was securing his ear piece when there was a cry for help and the voice was too familiar to Steve that it cut right through every other noise in the vicinity and straight to his heart. 

He turned, neck straining and eyes widening as he saw Danny stumbling around the fence of the house.

He wanted to smile, the relief flooding through him at seeing the omega on his feet.

"Danny!" he yelled out though the omega was struggling and didn't seem to hear.

"Help me!" Danny called again though with a weaker voice. "She's insane!"

"Danny!" Steve called and began to run when he caught sight of another blonde head following his omega. Anger surged through him in a white hot rage of possession and disgust. "Danny, get down!" he yelled. He knew there was no chance he would reach Danny before Gray did and the last thing he wanted was a hostage situation. He had to end this now. He slowed, pulled up his rifle and as Danny hit the deck he wasted no time in pulling the trigger sending three rapid fire bullets directly at the disgraced doctor. 

She fell, arms flailing back as she hit the ground but Steve didn't care about her as long as she couldn't touch Danny again. 

The omega was on the ground, face down, breathing hard and Steve skidded to a halt beside him, falling to his knees. He reached for Danny, pulling him round but wary that he could be injured. He was only vaguely aware of Chin running past him to get to Gray and secure her hopefully dead body while he gave all his concentration to Danny. 

He sat and lifted Danny so he was lying across his legs and wiped across his sweaty, dirty face, moving stray strands of hair out of the way. "Hey, baby, it's okay, I got you."

"She's in-"

"We've got her don't worry. Don't worry about anyone but yourself, okay, Danny? Oh my God," he said as he took in Danny's appearance. He was sweaty and pale but the yellow hue on the skin around his eyes already worried Steve. As the omega blinked, Steve saw just how much gold was there. His inner caveman blanched at the audacity that someone would take Danny and try to bond with him when Steve had the claim. That they would resort to forcing something with drugs to break what they had. He could tell instantly that this was the result of Nexus. After Danny had described some of the after effects earlier in the case against the traffickers, Steve had made a point of researching more about it and how it worked. There was a good reason it was highly moderated in US, and why it was banned in other countries. He knew omegas feared its use and with good reasons going by some of the horror stories that google had uncovered.

And right now he could swear he felt a tug somewhere inside his head, a craving for a suppressed bond that he happily answered but couldn't seem to quite connect. It distracted him, worried him. Angered him. 

"Steve?" Lou asked from nearby, hanging back deliberately.

"Get the paramedics," Steve barked with urgency and a hint of desperation. He pulled Danny closer, rubbing his hands over the other man's bare skin, letting him feel that Steve was there for him. "It's alright," he mumbled. Noticing the blood stained wrists and how one end of a pair of handcuffs was hanging from them, he got more angry at the conditions she had kept him in. 

"Do me a favor?" Danny asked, blearily, losing all strength now he knew he was with Steve and once again safe.

"Anything," Steve answered. 

"Put the fire out? It's too hot…" He pulled at Steve's hand, directing it to his shorts and rolling up trying to get Steve to touch him intimately, but Steve didn't let it happen despite Danny's keen of need.

Steve assumed Danny was hallucinating or too drugged to know what was going on. Maybe in his mind he was reliving how they met in the fire at the warehouse. Then he kissed Danny's forehead and felt the heat radiating from the other man and knew it was a fever. A heat fever. But way too severe. "We'll get you cool, baby, it's okay. The paramedics are gonna help. We'll get you to the hospital and get the drugs flushed from you and then everything will be alright. We can get back on track, yeah?"

Danny gave a low, throaty giggle. "Maybe this time we'll know if we're bonding…"

"We never lost it, Danny. Trust me, our bond is too strong for her to kill it with drugs."

"Since when were you an expert?" Danny's hand waved listlessly between them but it was clear the other man just wanted to give in to the overdose, fight drained from him, shock and adrenaline wearing off.

"I just know, okay? Let me take care of this. You gotta trust me."

"I do," Danny said, reaching to Steve's neck to pull him down. "I knew you'd show up. I just… had to do some of the fighting myself."

Steve smiled and pressed his forehead to Danny's. "I know. You're no damsel in distress. I'm so proud of you."

The moment was broken as the paramedics appeared. Blessedly they were both betas, unaffected by Danny's drug induced heat. Before Steve knew it, he and Danny were in the back of an ambulance speeding to Queens.


	13. Chapter 13

Steve had worn a hole in the floor of the waiting room with his pacing. Twice he'd tried to make his way to Danny's room and twice he'd been stopped and told to wait patiently. Danny was okay, they'd let him know once the doctors were allowing visitors. He hadn't done anything except worry and wait interminably, mind on nothing else but what ifs for how the drugs had affected his omega and what that might mean. 

He still felt their bond. They may not have realized it had formed but once there it burned strong inside and he was sure he'd know if it had been irreparably damaged. There was a sliver of doubt but he refused to give it credence. 

Every time a door opened nearby his head was up, almost meerkat-ish in observation, but until now it had been for other patients until finally he saw the same doctor that had disappeared down the corridor earlier when Danny had been brought in. They'd taken Danny to a single room away from the ER in order to give him much needed privacy and dignity, which Steve very much appreciated, but it was too far from the waiting room and he'd have preferred to be in the room with Danny.

"Doctor, is Danny okay? I want to see him. What's happening?" he harangued as soon as the doctor was within a decent distance.

"Danny will be fine," the doctor began. "But there are some serious decisions that need to be made about his medical care." The doctor was short, actually around Danny's height but had more stoutness to him with a kind and laid back demeanor. He was a beta, which surprised Steve as most doctors to be found around ERs were alphas, with betas mostly running local clinics or specializing in various disciplines. But it made sense that Danny not be around too many alphas if he was experiencing a strong heat - and Steve would be feeling more than the prickling of irritation he felt now if that were the case.

"What sort of decisions?" He asked. "Don't you just flush the crap out of his system and send him home?" After all, that's what he thought they'd been doing for the last hour.

"You are aware he was drugged with Nexus," the doctor asked, though it wasn't a question.

"Yeah, but that's not life threatening or anything… right? I mean, only in rare cases…" Steve began to worry again.

"Yes, of course," the doctor immediately said to alleviate any fears Steve had. "But you have to understand, Danny's case **is** different. The dose he was given was _**four times**_ the recommended limit. Apparently his captor believed it would speed things up which, frankly, as a doctor herself she should have known was nonsense."

" _ **FOUR TIMES**_!? What does that mean; he was overdosed? What do we do? How does that affect him?"

The doctor glanced at his notes again before holding the clip board to his chest as he spoke. "An amount that large is playing havoc with his hormones but that's not all. The other problem we face here is that he was already in a bonding process.  Nexus doesn't play well with that; it's designed to be used when an omega's hormones are at a base level before they've already begun to change with a bond. It confuses the body and as a result, it's tremendously painful for Danny to cope with, again, worse due mostly to the volume he was injected with."

Steve wiped his hands down his face. "What kind of pain?"

"Headaches, blurred and spotted vision, dizziness and nausea. All symptoms that would be minor irritations to an omega given a regular dose but in Danny's case, it feels, in his words, like having a building fall on top of you. Apparently something he's familiar with," The doctor shook his head, part in wonder and part in sympathy. "All on top of which he's had to contend with the heat fever and strong, frustrating sexual desires. He has informed me that those don't feel as bad as they could due to the distracting nature of the pain. But now we have him on some pain relief they may feel more pronounced."

"So… what does this all mean? Does it take longer to flush out or are there alternatives...?"

"We have Danny on a saline trip with Paracetemol but I am loathe to intervene with anything stronger and I'm afraid that the chemicals have already done what they set out to do. His heat cannot be safely reversed at this stage without complications."

"I thought you'd have some kind of vaccine or antidote to give him. Some sort of.. anti-Nexus?"

"Please, sit down," the doctor motioned for Steve to go with him to the plastic chairs nearby that squeaked as they sat. Steve braced himself. A doctor asking you to sit down meant they had bad news and it felt like they'd reached that point in the conversation. "Considering the amount of Nexus Danny was given it means we would need to administer a very large dose of what you'd think of as the 'anti-Nexus'. Going from one chemically induced extreme to the other is a dangerous prospect. Using that drug under normal circumstances takes away Danny's physical need for an immediate bond and resets his hormones."

"And you said Danny's circumstances aren't normal."

"Indeed, they're not. In this case we'd need to use a dose on a par with what was injected into his system earlier today. That amount could leave Danny in a position where he'd not just lose his current bond, but all bonds and the ability to form them. For the rest of his life. It could make him sterile, for bonding and mating."

Steve sat back, trying to let the doctor's words sink in. "No bonds. Ever."

"No bonds," he reiterated. "But there is an alternative that will help Danny. I need to know, how far along was your bond?"

"I don't know," Steve began, still preoccupied with the thought that it might not be possible anymore and just how much he hated the thought that he and Danny couldn't be together like he - they - wanted. "We had an unorthodox beginning, neither of us were fully aware it had even started."

"Okay, well, how long have you known each other, maybe I can extrapolate from there," he readied the clip board as if to do the math and work out possible dates.

"About three days."

"Okay three…," he began writing then stopped. "I'm sorry, three, you said three…. DAYS?!"

"Yeah."

"Unorthodox is an understatement. A bond in its infancy I would not have expected to still be there after such a strong dose of Nexus and the presence of a determined alpha. Astonishing. If the concept of soul mates wasn't just for Hollywood movies, I'd think that was a plausible explanation."

"What does this have to do with anything, Doctor?" Steve wondered why he was being questioned along these lines. "If it's about legal rights, Danny's father is in Hawaii,  he can tell you we were due to sign the hand over papers tomorrow. The ORC can tell you that, too. Whatever your alternative is I should be able to hear it if it's going to so seriously affect Danny's future-"

"You and he were on your way to a natural and legal bond," the doctor cut him off. "I don't doubt that. Danny has already talked about it and he was very sincere, I sensed no coercion. I think our options are good news for you."

"We could use some of that right about now," Steve hoped.

"You could take Danny home. Help him through the heat and complete your bond just a little sooner than expected."

"Now?!" Steve asked, surprised. It seemed such a strange concept. They weren't ready.

"It should work in normalizing his hormone levels and both counteracting and satisfying the effects of the Nexus, allowing Danny back to an even keel and giving you both what you wanted anyway."

"But it's so soon."

"Going from meeting, to initiating a bond to completing it in less than four days. It might be some kind of record, you'd have to talk to the people at the Guinness Book about that," he patted Steve's shoulder. "I should let you know that I already spoke to Danny about his options. He asked a lot of questions and I think his experiences have made the decision a difficult one for him. He's seriously considering taking the antidote."

"What?! No. He can't make a decision like that on his own. His father has medical rights. I have-"

"That's quite a grey issue," the doctor interrupted. "You'd need to prove to a judge that Danny doesn't have the mental capacity at this stage for you to intervene. Frankly, not only would the medical records disagree with you, but you just don't have the time. I would be shocked that a judge, or your own conscience, would allow the pain he is in to continue all because you would disagree with his autonomy."

"He's a prime. A judge would not want him to take the antidote but you're right. It should be his decision," Steve said but he balled his fists up, frustrated. He felt something inside him shudder at the thought of not bonding with Danny and it just wouldn't allow any other possible outcome. "I have to talk to him, I think. He's been through a lot, he's suffered at the hands of criminal alphas, that must be affecting him. But if I go in there and remind him what we have is a good thing then I think I can convince him to go home with me."

"That's what I was hoping to hear from you," the doctor smiled, kindly. "He's awake. You can head into his room whenever you're ready."

"Thanks, doc, oh!" Steve stopped the man from rising to his feet. "His parents. I haven't contacted them but you must need things signed, or permissions or… I dunno. I can't believe I didn't think to call them."

"It's fine. Danny already did, told them he was okay. I think he wanted them to stay away; he didn't want them here while he was feeling as he does. Embarrassed, I think. His father gave permission for you to take charge of him. If he hadn't, I wouldn't have been so open with you about Danny's situation."

"Right. That makes sense. Thank you, doctor." Steve strode down the corridor with large steps determined to get to his omega quickly, but he slowed, almost apprehensive as he reached the door. He gave a soft knock before carefully opening the door. "Hey," he smiled at Danny as he moved into the room and shut the door tight behind him. 

The room was a decent size, the bed looked comfortable. There was a window but it had been shut and the curtains drawn so they had complete privacy. Danny had a drip attached to the back of his hand that was now blessedly free of the cuffs he'd been found wearing, though there were red, raw marks on his wrists from where he'd fought against the restraints. There was also a heart monitor that seemed to be recording a faster beat than Steve would like going by his rudimentary field medicine training, a nasal cannula with it's tubing across Danny's cheek, and his bad knee was propped up on an extra pillow. 

"Hey," Danny answered, voice still a little woozy but he seemed to have all his marbles. "The docs didn't know for sure but she's dead, right?"

"I didn't hang around to find out but I put three bullets into her. Pretty sure one went in her head. Even if she did survive, her life wouldn't be worth living. I'd make sure of that," Steve told the omega as he pulled the chair closer and reached out for Danny's hand. "Escaping like you did, that's not bad for an amateur cop."

"Jersey Slip. Works every time," he lifted his hands and shrugged as he indicated where one wrist had been more badly rubbed by the metal. "Well, most of the time."

"Getting out of cuffs, pick pocketing? I thought you wanted to be a cop growing up not a robber."

Danny smiled at the comment. "Both handy thing for cops to know, too. And, by the way, if I'd been born alpha or even a beta, my arrest record would blow yours out of the water. Just saying."

"Oh really?" Steve laughed.

"Yeah, wanna make something of it? Get out the Clue, let's see what you got."

"I don't think they have any board games around here. Besides, you won't be here long enough to finish a game," Steve told him. 

Danny's face lost the smile, and took on a more schooled expression - he didn't want to give anything away. "Doctor Kohashi told you what's going on."

"He laid it all out, yeah," Steve squeezed Danny's hand in support as he made mental note to remember the doctor's name. "He also told me something about you wanting to take the antidote. I figure that had to be the pain talking."

Danny looked towards the window though all he saw was the striped curtain design. He scratched at his leg nervously. "Seemed like it might be a good idea."

"I thought it sounded like a terrible idea. Losing any chance for us to bond, why would you consider that?"

Danny shrugged as he looked back at Steve. "We just met," he reiterated a much earlier conversation between the pair about trust. "You're been amazing but I can't put all this on you. I was thinking… if I'd been told I could lose the ability to bond weeks ago I would have taken it in a heartbeat. Get my eyes dulled out for life and lead a decent life as a pseudo-beta or something. Y'know, new identity, maybe get a better job, not worry about my contacts falling out or someone working out what I really was."

"But this isn't a few weeks ago and you don't need to worry about that kind of thing anymore. You and me, we're good together, we can make a good life. I thought that's what you wanted."

"I do, I just," Danny took a deep breath in through his nose, getting the benefit of the cannula and trying to calm himself as he continued. "After everything that's happened. Are you sure?"

"Of course I'm sure. I believe in us." He answered. "Besides, I never wanted a quiet, boring life and so far my friend, you have provided the opposite of that."

"I could actually use a little boring right about now," Danny answered. 

"Well, you've earned it," he leaned in and kissed Danny's head before smoothing back his hair. "I've known what I wanted since before I even realized. You did, too. You and me, partner, we're going to be great. Now how about we see if the docs will let you get out of here and we can go home."

"Yeah," Danny agreed. 

Steve leaned up to press the call button. When a nurse appeared he asked for her to get the doctor back. He lowered his head to Danny's again and breathed deep before kissing his cheek and down into his neck. "Doc's right, your heat is strong… I can smell it when we're close…taste it..."

Danny moaned as Steve licked against his sweaty skin, passing over the plastic tube attached to the omega. Danny smelled so good Steve felt like he could melt into the other man and was comfortable where he was. He gave Danny's hand a soft squeeze before letting it go and rubbing his hand across the omega's blanket covered stomach.

A throat clearing at the door made Danny push at Steve's shoulder until he sat up straighter. 

"Decisions have been made?" Doctor Kohashi asked. "You boys wanting to get out of here?"

"Uh, yeah," Steve answered, as he shook the cobwebs from his brain. "Just, how will it work? He needs to finish the drip, right? And won't the pain still get in the way of the bonding process? I don't even know why he has the cannula in, and with the heart monitor… doesn't he need to be here longer?"

The Doctor smiled. "The cannula is providing some breathing help for him when the more sexual nature of the heat affects him. When he was brought in he was hyperventilating every so often when he felt a wave of it go through his body. It helped to have the oxygen there for him. The drip will be finished by the time we've signed off on everything and got Danny some clothes to wear," he said, indicating the hospital gown Danny was sporting. "There's not much more we can do for Danny medically. It'll be you that helps him 'heal' from this point. Speaking of, I'm actually more concerned about what prescriptions you'll need."

"Me? I'm fine," Steve said.

"Danny's considerably far further along the process than you are. You've barely begun to settle him in with you, there's no way that you've nested. Your hormones just aren't at that level yet. Essentially, your body is ill prepared to cope with Danny in this state."

"So what do I need to do?"

"I'm going to prescribe you some pills," the doctor said. "They'll help keep your sexual appetite up in order to compete with his. And I'd take a couple of days off work if I were you. You're going to be exhausted, Danny more so and there's no way you'll be wanting to leave him alone for a good 48 hours."

"The bond is early but it's still normal, right?" Steve asked, a flush to his cheeks. 

"Sex is sex, Commander McGarrett. Just listen to your bodies and remember to drink plenty of water," Doctor Kohashi deadpanned.

*

Most of the next hour was a blur. There were prescriptions handed over as well as instructions for generic medications - what to take and when. More advice was laden on them as well as pamphlets. The hospital provided Danny with a pair of scrubs to wear until he got home. 

He remembered the doctor joking about the young alpha doctors who had shown interest in Danny's situation and how he was glad Danny was getting to go home now so they could concentrate on their other patients. It had made Steve bristle with possessiveness. Having been so close to Danny, the smell of his heat lingered in his nostrils and it constantly made his mind whisper 'mine' when he saw the omega. 

There had also been a conversation about Danny wanting to walk out under his own steam but his knee needed the rest and as soon as he'd stood there had been a wave of dizziness. He'd made it to the bathroom by himself to dress but the nurses insisted on using the wheelchair to take him outside which Dany had reluctantly agreed to but that was mostly after a nurse had pointed out to him that the scrubs were thin and if Danny took his time walking out of here, the slick he was producing would seep through the material and it would be obvious to everyone how far into the heat he was.

He'd sat in the wheelchair with his hands between his thighs the whole way down and into the sunshine outside. 

Steve had called Grover who had brought the truck for them and they swapped the keys and shook hands. Lou had been around Steve the most recently and had clocked every emotional response Steve had. After Steve had filled him in on the basics he had offered to bring the truck so they didn't have to suffer through a cab ride home. Jerry was following to pick Lou up.

Steve drove carefully. He wanted to get Danny home fast and for them to start so that Danny wouldn't feel like he did right now and maybe put to rest any of the pains he still had, but with his own mind so focused on the amount of sex they were about to have (his dick was already half hard at the thought), he made a point of being super careful at every light, ever intersection, ever turn.

Pulling into his driveway was a relief. They were home in one piece, Danny was safe, and though hard to believe, they were about to complete their bond.

"You good?" Steve asked as he noticed Danny rubbing his fingers between his legs.

"I'm soaking," he replied then rubbed his other hand over his forehead. "In more ways that one. I really want a cold shower."

"We'll get you inside and upstairs. You can take a shower to help cool down some of the fever but don't wash away all that slick. I'm going to need it," he winked, squeezed the back of Danny's neck then got out and ran round to open the omega's door for him. 

Danny needed support because of his injured knee, but it was truly the dizziness and heat that caused him to stumble a little on his way up the steps of the porch. He held onto the back of Steve's t-shirt with a tight fist as they made their way inside. 

Steve helped him upstairs and allowed Danny some more privacy to get prepared while he checked the house over. He listened to the shower turning on as he set the alarm and then he headed into the kitchen where he grabbed water and snacks from the fridge before heading upstairs to the master bedroom. 

After swallowing two of the pills the doc had given him, he pulled back the covers of the bed and shut the curtains. He quickly ran into the spare room and grabbed some more pillows and another blanket. As much as he wanted the bed to be free of anything to tangle them in while they were having sex, he knew he'd want something to wall them in and wrap around themselves once they were resting. He had no real time to plan anything romantic or sensual or perfect. They'd have to make do.

He raked through the bedside drawer then scratched his head. He also didn't have any knotting condoms, just regular and those would be pointless. They'd break, guaranteed. Why waste them?

They'd be starting a family soon anyway so they may as well have unprotected sex.

As the shower turned off he swallowed a lump in his throat and turned his attention to the adjoining door. A few moments later, Danny appeared. A towel was wrapped around his waist and slung low over his hips. His skin held a sheen from the water droplets that dripped from his mussed up and still wet hair. He looked gorgeous. 

"Wow," he said, amazed.

"That's the heat effect talking," Danny modestly waved off. 

Instead of reassuring him, Steve just asked, "How's your head? And your eyes… you still in pain?"

"It comes and goes. I guess the pain meds helped to dull it down and maybe I'm used to it now. Weirdly, since I've been closer to you again, my eyes haven't felt like anyone is stabbing me in them."

"That's good. That's a good sign. Maybe the Nexus has agreed that you and I are the right bond."

"It's happening, we're doing this?"

Instead of answering, Steve walked around the bed and approached Danny. He pressed the back of his hand to Danny's forehead and felt the fever radiating from him. 

"Steve, I know I'm hiding it well, I know I might not look it, and I've not said anything but, fuck," Danny ran a hand underneath his towel and the material fell to the floor, forgotten. Steve looked down between them to see Danny's fingers behind his dick as he pressed one inside his wet pussy. "I need a dick. I need to be fucked. I need to be filled up. I can't wait any longer."

"You don't have to, baby," Steve pressed his hand to Danny's, keeping the omega's finger where it was and he watched as Danny crooked and swirled it around inside himself and his mouth twitched as he took a sharp breath. "I'm right here," he swooped in, pressing his lips to Danny's, taking his lips in a demanding kiss, tongue fucking into his mouth in promise. Danny moaned into him and Steve could feel his omega's wetness as it slid against their hands. His body was ready and open and hungry for sex and Danny was right - he'd hidden his desires well for the last few hours and he must be desperate for it now. 

Steve pulled Danny close then lifted him into his arms, carrying him the short distance to the bed then all but throwing him down. Danny bounced and slid to the center of the bed, unable to stop touching himself as he watched Steve quickly pull all his clothes off. 

Danny's legs were wide but Steve pushed them wider still as he climbed onto the bed and knelt between them. His own cock was getting thick and heavy with need - the pills were doing their job to get him hard fast. 

"Look at you, so pretty, so wet for me," Steve murmured. There was so much of the slick that it filled Danny's cock and made him hard, too. Steve stroked him lazily as his thumb rubbed against Danny's clit. 

Danny threw his hands back above his head and moaned out a 'yes' as Steve's finger slid inside his pussy. "I need to come," he whined. "Make me come."

"I'm not inside you yet, baby."

Danny lifted his head. "Steve, I'm going to come a lot, This heat is so strong, I was drugged to the eyeballs, remember? I'll come a hundred times more once you're inside me please, just take the edge off. I've been wanting to come for you for hours."

"Just for me, huh? Just your alpha."

"My alpha," Danny whimpered, head resting on the pillow and eyes staring at the ceiling. 

In response, Steve pushed another finger in with the first as far as he could, making Danny arch his back at the feeling of them sliding in. Steve gave him no time to adjust, his fingers fucked into Danny hard with Danny so wet it slurped with the speed. 

He leaned over Danny, watching his face closely as his body tightened. Danny bucked up from the bed, seeking more, seeking fast and quickly he was coming; Steve could feel it around his fingers as he plunged them deep. Danny stretched his arms out luxuriously as he felt that release of pressure, edge firmly taken off his need but Steve knew that foreplay was unnecessary and after what he'd just seen, he longed to shove his dick inside Danny and watch and listen and surround himself in the pleasure of his omega. 

Before Danny had opened his eyes, Steve had positioned himself, dick rubbing against the leaking slick and then he pushed in. Danny was so wet, so open, so desperate that Steve slid home fast and easy. 

"Holy fuck," Steve exclaimed while Danny grinned with satisfaction and cried out 'yes, fuck yes'. 

He thrust down into the omega, deep and filling and he could feel the heels of Danny's feet at the back of his thighs, encouraging him in further. Steve ducked his head down against Danny's neck and inhaled the sweat and heat; he sucked against the bare skin, laving it with his tongue, savoring how he could hear and feel every moan that Danny voiced. 

As he pulled out and thrust back in he felt a surge of pride that he could elicit such sounds from the omega, such need. His hand tangled in Danny's hair as he pulled the omega's head back, exposing more of his neck for Steve to latch onto and he bit hard as he got caught up in them and in how the world simply shrunk to the size of their bed.

One hand was able to squeeze between their bodies and found it's way low where Danny's trapped dick rubbed against Steve's stomach. He found Danny's clit and rubbed his thumb furiously against it. 

Danny's breathing quickened to short, sharp intakes, his body tightened and his eyes squeezed shut and Steve knew by the muttered yeses and mores and fucks that Danny was going to come again. What he didn't expect was how good it would feel for him. The pulses of Danny's second orgasm pressed against his cock, pulled and pushed at it. It made him feel tighter around Steve's dick and sent a shiver through him as he felt himself edging closer. 

He could blame the pills he'd taken, he could blame the Nexus in Danny's system but he didn't want to. He wanted to think it was their bond - even rushed it sung inside him, filled him with joy and belonging and comfort - and a horniness he'd never experienced. Never had one person made him so aroused and to see that person come because of him made it even better. 

He didn't let up, didn't give Danny any respite. He lifted himself up just enough to get a better angle, better balance and he pounded into Danny; hips snapping forward with as much speed and sensation as he could muster. 

Danny's hand wrapped around the back of Steve's neck and clutched on tight. "So good. Steve, don't stop, don't stop," he encouraged.

"Almost there, baby, almost there, you feel so good, fuck, what you do to me."

Steve fondled his balls and felt around the edges of Danny's slit, stretching it a little further as his finger pressed in beside his cock. He was ready for Steve, so wet and ready for him to fill him deep.

"You gonna come for me again, Danny?"

"I'm not gonna stop. Fuck me deep," Danny was able to get his elbows under himself and lift up enough to seem impatient for Steve to make him come again and for him to knot. There was no way Steve wasn't going to meet the challenge. 

He pressed his thumb to Danny's clit, he changed angles just enough to rub inside right where it made Danny gasp and in no time at all, Danny was having another orgasm, spurring Steve on. Almost without warning, Steve felt his whole body go rigid as he came, dick spurting cum inside Danny, energy ripping through him like a shockwave stronger than any orgasm he'd ever felt before. Steve's hips juddered as they lost rhythm and then he knew to force anything could hurt Danny, could hurt himself, his knot swollen, tight, full, deep. 

He grinned as he knew all that cum was trapped inside Danny and he was claiming him, filling him up, possibly breeding him.

He collapsed down on top of Danny but stopped himself from smushing the other man completely. He nipped his lips to Danny's, turning his head from side to side, rubbing their noses together, giving in to the intimate, slow contact. His dick was going nowhere and that was a good thing. 

Danny whimpered, loving the feeling of being full but still turned on and needing relief. He reached between them, stroked his own dick where it leaked with slick and used his other hand to massage and rub his sensitive clit. He undulated under Steve as the alpha continued to nibble and suck against his jaw and neck, curling himself lower so that he could bite and tease at a nipple.

"I'm gonna come again," Danny warned Steve who simply encouraged him, telling him how good it felt, how amazing he looked, how they'd both enjoy it.

"Just for me, let me see it," he continued and when Danny came again, he felt it deep and it gave him more pleasure, pulling more cum from his dick as it stayed rock hard and immovable. "That's it, baby, the more you come the longer I stay inside you and you want that, yeah? You want me inside you. You want me filling you up with my dick and my cum."

Danny whimpered, rubbing a tired hand over his forehead. "I've never come so much in my life, so strong. Fuck, it's never-ending," he pulled Steve into a hug even as their groins stayed joined and Danny widened his legs again. "I want more, I still want more, _fuck_."

Steve pulled back, supported himself on his elbows and combed his fingers through Danny's hair. It was tough to see in the light but the yellow tinge to Danny's facial features remained, as did some of the gold in his eyes. Their bond would be complete when Danny's eyes were fully the ocean blue they'd seen emerge in the last few days. It was going to be a gorgeous sight. Steve always knew the sea would dominate his life, he just never expected to find that deep yet bright blue in the true eye color of an omega.

Danny was almost in distress at the need he had for orgasm after orgasm and though Steve could provide a lot for him - and intended to - he felt there had to be an easier way. At least this time. "Help me scoot over," he asked of the omega and they made their way to the edge of the bed, still joined together. 

Steve reached down and under the bed to a box that he unlatched. Danny was unable to see what was inside, but his eyes widened when Steve produced a small vibrator. "Why do you have one of those?" Danny asked. 

"I've used it before. Not on me, but… It's clean," Steve began, not answering the question. "If you don't want to, then we won't. I know she did at the Center-"

"Don't mention her when we're in bed together. I'm fine. It's a good idea, I'm pretty sensitive to them so, yeah. This might work."

"But you're a virgin," Steve said, suddenly feeling a wave of confusion that his caveman side struggled to understand, especially considering most of his brains were in his dick right now.

"Yeah, but I ran away so that I could live my own life. I didn't become a monk. I've got hands and there's sex toys. A lot of different ones. I've not had an alpha, but I know my body."

"Okay," Steve replied, satisfied with the answer and letting himself take a moment to let his pure alpha side revel in knowing he was Danny's first… last. Only. 

He pressed the button and luckily the batteries were still good and though small, the little vibrator seemed to pack something of a punch. Steve reached down and placed it between their bodies resting against Danny's clit but he could feel it through his own lower body and he could swear it was affecting his dick, too.

Danny reacted to it immediately. "Right there, fuck, that's it, that's it, that's it," he said, repeating it over and over as he quickly built to a climax that had Steve gasping at the sight and the feel and he knew he was releasing more cum inside Danny with another small orgasm of his own. 

Maybe they'd need to revisit the sex toy idea again further down the line. Though he was also determined that their next time would be styled on what their bond should have been, with romance and grand gestures and champagne and music and sensuality that was unrushed. 

That wasn't to say this wasn't amazing. Danny had come multiple times and wasn't stopping anytime soon and Steve's orgasm had been like a rocket going off inside him that he'd been unprepared for in its intensity. This was fast, this was hard, this was raw need sex, and it was the best he'd ever had. 

He pressed his groin closer, trapping the vibrator harder against Danny's body and he lay over the omega, whispering in his ear every dirty thing he could imagine mingled with the most loving of words and promises. 

Danny came four more times and might have kept going even further into the night except that he finally passed out as his fever broke and Steve's knot began to ease.

As he gazed at Danny's exhausted body, allowing the omega to get his rest, Steve gathered all the covers and sheets around them, building the pillows around them like a wall and he cuddled close, arms around Danny in a tight, secure embrace and he knew the bond was singing happily between them.


	14. Chapter 14

Danny woke to a distant sound of birds outside against a backdrop of steady waves lapping at the shore. It wasn't dark but the room was muted as the sun shined through the thin curtains to give the room an orange tint. He snuffled against the pillow. He was lying half on his side with a heavy, hard, warm body plastered to his. He had an arm thrown over a pillow that was lying by his side and his hand fisted in a blanket. It was like being in a cocoon and despite the tropical climate outside, it felt good to be bundled up.

He stretched carefully. He didn't want to wake his partner and he wanted to judge just what and where was still sore. 

The headaches had gone, his eyes felt clear and alert which was a good sign. The doctors must have been right about them working through the overdose of Nexus. His body seemed to thrum with energy and satisfaction but there were the odd muscle aches and strains from the work out they'd engaged in through the previous evening and night. He was thirsty and there was a funk hanging over them of dried sweat and bodily fluids and he could really use a shower but he was quite comfortable staying where he was.

"Morning," Steve mumbled against his shoulder, brushing his lips against the skin in light kisses. "Thought you'd sleep longer."

"You, too," Danny cleared his throat as he pushed back into Steve's embrace, hip pressing to his groin and the unmistakable arousal.

"Let me see your eyes," Steve finally lifted his head and shifted their bodies. Though he didn't have to, Danny opened his legs and Steve smiled as he moved between them. He kept himself up on his elbows and used a hand to move Danny's head into the sliver of light from between the curtains. "Beautiful," he said. "So blue."

"Completely?"

"Yeah," he answered but didn't look entirely happy. "There's still some yellow in the whites though, and your skin."

"It's okay, it doesn't mean there's anything to worry about. Docs told me it's like bruising, it'll fade in a couple of days."

Steve was happy enough with the answer and trailed his lips lovingly over Danny's forehead and circled down over his cheek to his mouth. They kissed languidly, like there was no hurry and it was filled with a sense of rightness. 

Steve shifted his hips and Danny could feel the head of his hard cock pressing against his pussy. He threw his good leg around Steve's waist and his foot slipped to Steve's ass and encouraged him forward. 

Steve was slow as he entered Danny's body, unsure how easy it would be this time but he'd have been slow anyway. He wanted this time to be savored. It wasn't about 'getting through' a heat cycle, this was just about them and some reaffirming of their brand new bond. 

With lazy circles of his hips, each full thrust was punctuated with a hitch of Danny's breath that Steve reveled in. His nose was buried in Danny's neck, breathing in his own scent mingled with Danny's in a pleasing new way that he would sear into his memory. They would both always smell like this now and he wouldn't want it any other way. 

He could feel the way that Danny's cock was stuck between them and hard with excess slick, and Danny's fingernails raked over his back and then he gripped tight to Steve's shoulders. He seemed to pull Steve further down into him though Steve was doing his best not to suffocate his omega.

"Come on, babe," Danny encouraged as one hand made its way down Steve's sweaty spine as far as he could reach.

Steve had loved the slow, sensual love-making but he could feel the need pooling low inside him and that he needed to go harder and faster. He pushed Danny's legs wider as he brought his own knees up further and snapped his hips with each thrust. 

He pushed his arms underneath Danny's body and curled his hands around the omega's shoulders. He pressed his lips to Danny's chin and cheek; they kissed sloppily as their bodies bounced against the bed and their sex became more aggressive as they sought completion. 

Danny pulled his head to the side and bit his lip as he came. The feeling around Steve's cock was just as intense as it had been the night before and made him falter. He soothed Danny through his comedown with as many platitudes as he could think up though he knew the majority of them were dirty and about just exactly what the thousand things he wanted to do to Danny's body were. They spurred on his own release that came just after Danny's pulses had slowed and finished.

He bit down against the join of Danny's neck and shoulder, belatedly realizing there were marks there from the night before that he didn't remember making but liked that he had. 

He didn't knot, but he didn't pull fully out; just kept the head of his dick inside Danny's slit. It acted like a barrier for his cum but staying connected was what he really wanted. Thoughts of Danny being open for him, wanting him, slick for him made a shiver go through his body anytime he thought about it - being in that moment meant he wanted to savor it as long as he could. 

He collapsed down on top of Danny and the omega surprisingly didn't complain, instead he petted Steve's hair and ran his fingers up and down Steve's back. To think that both men had been so… 'disinclined' to the others' sub-gender and now here they were in bed together, ignoring everything else in the world except staying hidden surrounded by pillows and blankets. And doing a lot of fucking.

Steve finally pulled all the way out of Danny but only because he wanted to see. He crawled lower, pulling the covers back with him. He did it slowly, lips following hands. He paused to suck and bite over both of Danny's nipples before going lower still enjoying the hardness of Danny's muscles and the way his strength rippled underneath - the strength Steve was so proud of.

He licked a stripe along Danny's dick, tasting the slick that had leaked from its tip and then he ducked lower. He pressed his middle finger to Danny's pussy, stroking up and down to his clit then pushing in, feeling the way the slick and cum slurped against the digit. He pushed his cum back inside when he saw more of it leaking out, slowly finger fucking Danny who was already moaning again like he had another orgasm in him. 

Steve had no idea omegas could be so insatiable though it was entirely possible there were remnants of the Nexus still affecting Danny. Wanting to see Danny come rather than just feel it, he kept going. There was so much slick still clinging to Danny's groin and thighs and it was a heady smell when Steve was this close. He moved in, letting his tongue flick out against Danny's clit.

Danny bucked against the bed, liking the feeling so much that Steve locked his mouth over the area and began to suck and lick and do everything he could to drive Danny crazy. The noises Danny made were incredible, he seemed to have lost the ability to form real words again beyond the same five or six and Steve wanted to push Danny's tired out body as far as he could. 

Without realizing it, one of his slicked up fingers was pressing against Danny's hole, rubbing against it as his now two fingers were fucking into Danny's pussy. He let it press deeper, sliding slowly inside Danny's ass, fucking both holes in tandem while he continued the onslaught to Danny's clit with his tongue.

Danny's voice went up an octave as he yelled out a long 'fu-u-u-uck' followed by the same in rapid fire cries until he was finally able to repeat over and over, "Fuck, I'm gonna come, I'm gonna come, I'm gonna come."

Just as the first wave of orgasm hit the omega, Steve pulled his head back and watched delightedly as Danny's pussy pulsed around his fingers. He kept them fucking into the omega through it all even as the other man went quiet and lax above him. 

Steve sat up on his knees and smiled as he saw Danny had dozed off again. Or passed out. One or the other. He lay back down where he was still between Danny's legs, head resting on Danny's chest, fingers still slowly moving in and out. 

*

"I feel weird," Danny said after he put the bottle of water aside and slid back down into the covers. 

"Sick weird?" Steve asked, concerned, fingers idly playing along Danny's chest, leg hooked over Danny's keeping him close. 

"No, just weird," he rubbed at his eyes. "I'm kinda sore from everything, worn out, feels like I ran a marathon, y'know, after being run over by a bus. But I just feel weird." he finished, but Steve kept looking at him expectantly to help him understand. "I dunno, I just feel… full." He shrugged. "Sticky and full."

"Well that makes sense," Steve said laying back again. "You are sticky and full. Felt like I got my cum so deep it would be at the back of your throat," he laughed.

"Wait, what?" Danny turned to face Steve better. "You didn't use condoms last night?"

"No," Steve answered. "Didn't have any and didn't have time to run out and buy some. Besides, it was just one night and I figure your heat wasn't properly on schedule. It was fake, y'know? Figured your body wouldn't be… firing on all cylinders, if you know what I mean."

"Are you kidding me?" Danny sat up straight and pushed the covers down so he could take a good look at himself. He rubbed his hand against his pussy and to the drying stickiness there and wasn't happy. "I'm a prime, you imbecile. We get pregnant easily! You really think it takes an omega that long to drop a fucking egg or whatever?!"

"So what you're saying, pardon the pun, is that you're always 'primed' and ready?" Steve struggled to keep his laugh back and was failing miserably. 

"This isn't a joke," Danny hit Steve's arm.

"Relax would you? Even if you are pregnant after just one night, albeit, one hell of a night, then it's fine. People are going to expect us to have kids soon anyway."

Danny glared at his alpha. "It would have been nice to be consulted."

"I thought you could tell. You were pretty insistent about how much I fuck you last night and fill you up," Steve looked at Danny with a predatory, sexy look.

Danny pulled away and Steve launched himself, gabbing the omega around the waist and pulling him back into the security and tranquility of their bed. With one arm locked around Danny's upper body, the other skirted lower, palm spread to cover Danny's groin below his dick and rubbing, trying to get him aroused again. 

Danny wasn't having any of it. He grabbed a pillow and twisted round so that he could stuff the material into Steve's face and push him back. "I'm going for a shower," he said as he extracted himself from the swaddling of the sheets and stood.

Steve smiled as he watched the other man walking to the bathroom, naked and looking amazing from behind, trickles of slick between his legs and walking funny - not just because of his bad knee. "I'm coming with you," he said as he followed. "In more ways than one."

*

Danny stared at himself in the mirror as he settled his hair into place. Steve hadn't wanted the omega to get dressed at all but had relented to allowing him to wear his shorts which were hanging low on his waist. 

As much as Danny was now over the effects of his heat and the added issues of the Nexus, Steve was still partly under its spell. Alphas got like this after bonding - they got 'heat drunk'. There was cuddling, and touching, a refusal to be separated from the omega. Doctors said it was some kind of caveman, animalistic throwback to the alpha protecting the omega from other alphas who would also want to fuck them and breed with them. It was their way of laying a claim. 

Danny always thought he would hate it but he felt warm inside and shivered with delight as Steve once again wrapped himself around him from behind, laying his chin on Danny's shoulder and telling him again how amazing he was. 

Although even with being heat drunk, Steve was also post-coital - the pair of them having had sex again in the shower with Danny first going down on Steve to get him hard and then being turned to face the wall as Steve fucked him hard from behind in much the same position as they were in now. 

He cleared his throat as he put down his comb. "We need to have something to eat. I'm starving."

Steve turned Danny so that he was leaning back against the sink and he kissed him solidly. "There's not much in the kitchen but I'll make you something nice. Unless you wanna go down on me again and swallow. Apparently there's calories in spunk," he murmured against Danny's cheek.

Danny pushed the alpha away. "You're gross."

"And you're stuck with me now," he leered at Danny before reverting to normal. "I've got bread and I've got eggs. If you wanted something fancier then we'd have to go out but I don't want to do that."

"I know," Danny said, understanding the needs Steve's hind brain was giving him. "I'll eat whatever you make."

"Whatever _**I**_ make?" Steve asked, pointing at himself. 

"Hey, you fucked me raw for about 12 hours. The least you can do is make me eggs."

*

They were snuggling on the sofa with the TV on and a blanket slung over them when there was a knock on the door. 

"You've had long enough boys," the voice of Danny's mother rang out. "Time to come out of your hovel."

Danny was grateful that she'd called out, knowing that Steve might still be in protective mode and worry about any invading alpha on his territory. Even though Clara's voice made everything seem perfectly fine, he still told Danny to stay where he was while he got up to answer the door. 

"My new son in law!" she greeted him with a hug.

"Technically not yet," Steve answered as they let go and he shook Eddie's hand. The alphas hadn't seen each other face to face the entire time Danny was gone but Steve could tell everything still weighed heavy on the man. "Mr Williams, sir," he said in respect to his elder alpha. 

"Steve," he said before pulling Steve in for a hug. "You keep saving our son. We can't thank you enough."

"Uh, I saved myself," Danny pointed out, hand raised in the air as he still lay across the sofa. The others indulged him, even though it was mostly true.

"We're very glad that an alpha like yourself is Danny's bond mate," Eddie told Steve. "Don't screw it up."

"I won't, sir."

"So how did last night go?" Clara asked as she sat next to Danny, forcing him to sit up.

"Ma!" he complained in response. There was no way he was going to talk about this with his parents. "It's all done, okay? We did it. We bonded. That's all you need to know."

"Seems you boys can't do anything in the right order," Clara smiled. "But we're happy for you. After all these years to have our son back in our lives and happy. Maybe some more grandchildren on the way."

"Ma," Danny warned his mother to shut up again. 

"We didn't know how you'd both feel today," Eddie took over. "What with not knowing how the Nexus would affect the bonding but we do have an appointment this afternoon and it feels prudent that we stick to that. Steve, I'm sure you'll be happier knowing things are official."

"Yes, of course," Steve continued in his polite tone. He really didn't know if he should be saying anything in particular. He was acutely aware that he'd spent the night fucking their son over and over. Add to that the awkwardness that still lay between them with how Eddie probably thought Steve blamed him for Danny being taken, along with both men feeling their own guilt for that, and he was just perpetually confused over what he should say or do. 

They excused themselves and headed to the bedroom so that they could be more presentable. They dressed quickly, quietly, but seemed to move around each other like they'd been doing it for years. Eventually, both were sitting on the end of the messy, unmade bed.

"The doctor said you called your dad from the hospital. What did you say to him?"

Danny shrugged. "I told him it wasn't his fault, we couldn't have predicted her hiring local goons to pick me up. I mean, her assets were frozen so how she could afford them was, at the time, not something we could have known," he said and watched as Steve nodded along. "It's not your fault either for, I dunno, leaving me alone. I wasn't alone, I was with my parents where we all figured I'd be safe. Hell, I got cocky thinking everything was fine. If it was anyone's fault, it was mine."

"No, I'm trained to look for all the possibilities. Your father to a degree is too. We should have been more insistent. Maybe used a safe house."

"Not that I'm happy about being kidnapped. Again," Danny began as he reached out to take Steve's hand in his. "But if you had then maybe she'd still be out there and we'd be in lockdown. Maybe it's best to just say that what happened, happened. And we came out of it on the other side pretty okay and that's a win."

"Yeah," Steve agreed as he kissed Danny's head and offhandedly rubbed his thumb against the tinges of yellow still there, annoyed at it's presence and wanting it to fade. "How come your dad knew what option we'd taken?"

"Because I told him the choices, and he told me that there was no way you were going to let me take the antidote so I may as well accept that you and I were bonding that evening. If you thought I gave in to you a little quicker than I might have, then thank my dad."

"Wait, you really didn't want to bond with me?" Steve asked, concerned that he'd coerced Danny or at least been part of that element of society that Danny hated where the omega's wishes are ignored for the sake of the alpha.

"I did, don't get your panties in a twist," Danny told him. he then decided to indulge Steve a little and straddled his thighs, one arm over each of Steve's shoulders and leaned in to kiss him properly, slowly feeling Steve's arms tighten around his waist. "What I told you at the hospital was true. I wanted to give you an out. You're the only alpha I could ever see myself with. If you'd said no I'd have taken the antidote without complaint. The thought of being with or starting a family with anyone else is just… wrong."

"Yeah, it is," Steve replied mostly in a growl and squeezing Danny tight. 

"Come on, we need to get this over with," Danny said as he stood, hand in Steve's as the alpha also got to his feet.

"Don't sound so enthused about us getting married."

"Hey, it's not about that. My problem is with the archaic notion that the omega gets married off and signed over to the alpha. How come it's not the other way around, or at least happens to both of us, huh? It's stupid. Two people bonding should be equal."

"True," Steve said, not just humoring Danny but truly being affected by the omega's point of view over the last few days, seeing the struggles; it made him newly sympathetic to the equality he only barely had registered in the past as being missing.

"And we have to go to the ORC. Not exactly my favorite place in the world."

"That much I get, but we've got to repair some kind of relationship with them if we want the government to leave us alone as much as possible. We grant them some concessions and they'll grant us some. Tit for tat."

"Just, don't leave me alone in any of their rooms, okay?" Danny asked with the first real hint of apprehension Steve had ever seen in him. 

He squeezed Danny's hand as they made their way out of the room. "If they ever want you alone in there, they'd have to kill me first."

*

"Doctor Shaw," Steve greeted the woman as they arrived through the sliding doors of the ORC.

"Commander McGarrett. Danny," she greeted in return. "It's good to see you. Please, follow me," she gestured through to her office. 

Both knew where they were going and led Danny's parents down the short corridor and in. 

Shaw was remarkably straight faced and serious, no doubt unsure how Steve and Danny perceived her now. 

"I don't mean to sound rude," Steve began as they all sat. "But I'm surprised you're still here. I'd have expected the government to clean house after the incidents with Gray."

"The board of directors are still reviewing how to proceed. Honestly, I don't know if I will be kept on long term. I admit, I should have been more in tune to possible abuses long before now."

"It's not your fault," Danny spoke up. "Abusers are very good at hiding what they do. And in persuading their victims to keep quiet and act normal, too. I don't blame you for what happened to me. In fact I thank you for doing what you could at the time."

"Thank you, Danny," she said with a small smile and nod of gratitude. Though they all knew that if the government wanted to find someone to blame then they would, justified or not. "But it appears there was more than just Madison Gray working here with ulterior motives. It seems this ORC was rotting inside, though I have promised to do my utmost to root out all of those seeking to take advantage of whatever positions they hold here. I do know that a new director is coming to us from the mainland. She has inspected various Centers and knows what she's looking for. I'm sure you'll meet her in the coming weeks and months. She's much better suited for the leadership role than I. Honestly, I'm considering a bit of a career change myself, maybe a side step. But we'll see what happens when Inspector Dunn arrives next week," she said before brightening. "Anyway, I believe we have an interesting situation here. The hospital forwarded your records. How are you feeling, Danny?"

"Much better, thank you."

"Do you mind if a doctor here takes a look at you? Nothing major just some simple tests, draw some blood. We want to make sure you're free of the Nexus," she indicated his still yellow irises and the 'panda eyes' he had from it. "Steve can stay by your side," she assured him. 

It was reluctant, but they agreed. The doctor they saw was clinical and quiet - he was being extra cautious around them both, partially due to Danny's past trauma and partially because they had just bonded and with it being so fresh, Steve in particular would be prickly about Danny being touched.

The only time the conversation or the examination turned remotely sexual was when the doctor asked if their bonding had included unprotected sex. As Steve replied that it had, he made note that Danny would need to have follow ups in due course to see if anything had resulted from their union. 

They made their way back to Shaw's office, still hand in hand and were greeted by the sight of Danny's parents having a jovial conversation with Shaw.

"We were just thanking Doctor Shaw for the hospitality," Eddie said. "And she's informed us of the generous grants and compensation the ORC will be providing for the two of you going forward."

"What does that mean?" Danny asked as they came back into the room, worried that he'd have to do something they wanted in return for the money.

"It means you don't have to find work right away, honey," Clara patted his knee. "You can get your GED and maybe do some classes. Discover what it is you really want to do with your life. Of course, you need something flexible to work around your family situation," she pointed out. 

In the meantime, Steve had moved around Shaw's desk and was looking at an addendum to the contract he and Eddie were going to be signing, which detailed the government's responsibilities where it came to Danny. "Wow," he said. "With this much coming in every month Danny doesn't need to work full stop."

"I believe in its old fashioned ideas of what an omega prime should be doing, that's what the government expects," Shaw said. 

"There's always a catch," Danny said, not even interested in seeing the number on the paper.

"Normally I would agree," Shaw said. "But I think in this case the ORC is hoping this figure will stop you suing them."

"I'd rather they stay out of my life than ply me with money."

"I anticipated that and cautioned them to it. The directors don't want to antagonize you - they feel it could be stressful and cause complications in any future births. They also recognize that you are getting older and don't have many viable years ahead of you. The only thing they ask is that you keep in contact and take advantage of the Center's free healthcare as it pertains to any pregnancy. We do have top of the range equipment and care facilities."

Danny snorted. "And my kids? Whenever we might have them, if we have them, the ORC will want to have contact with them, they're going to be omegas, we all know that."

"You didn't have contact with an ORC until you were a teenager and since then there have been strides in omega rights. Perhaps that's a problem to worry about in the future. Who knows, the laws might have changed even further by then," she pointed out.

Steve put a hand on Danny's shoulder. "It's a good deal. You and I get to be together and left to our own devices. The ORC provides what we need when we need it and you have the freedom to take your time deciding on any possible career or if you even want one. We're not going to get better."

"Fine, sign it," Danny slumped into his seat. "Everyone sign it. I'll just sit here like a good omega and trust everyone else to lawfully make my decisions."

"Actually," Shaw turned one of the copies over to him. "The directors here have seen the value in having the omega agree in principal to decisions made. After all, it's your life." She gave a hint of a smile. "Like I said, laws could change in the future and we want to be prepared for that."

*

"What do you mean it's over? It can't just be over and solved without me being there! Look, we're close by, I'm coming in," Steve said as he turned at the next right.

"What are you talking about? We're all trained professionals, McGarrett. We can do this job without you. Get your asses back home, stay inside that cozy bubble of the newly wed and bonded, okay? You've gotta be going crazy out there and mixing with people. We got this," Grover told him over the speakerphone.

"Danny's parents are already headed back to the hotel, we were just going to grab some food and head home but we'll come in long enough for you to explain what the hell happened in the last 24 hours. We're almost there, I'll see you in ten minutes," Steve hung up on Lou and continued driving towards the Palace. 

"Wow," Danny said. "They solved the case without you and you're butt hurt about it?"

"I'm not butt hurt," Steve screwed his face up. "I just… I wanted to be the one, you know? I wanted to walk his sorry ass into county."

"Ah, I get it. I see what this is," Danny said, twisting a little in his seat to face Steve more. "It's because you're the alpha's alpha. The alpha _'prime'_ , if you will."

"Alpha prime? Really? What the hell does that mean?"

"It means you've got to know everything, do everything, be everywhere. It means you need to take the problems of the world onto your shoulders. Mine specifically right now. You're butt hurt because you didn't get to avenge me since I'm your omega. We just signed ourselves up for life babe. Maybe in that warped military brain of yours, you thought that taking him down yourself would be, I dunno, a good wedding present or something."

"Okay, maybe I'm a little bit butt hurt," Steve relented. "Aren't you? I thought you wanted to see this thing through, too."

Danny shrugged. "So long as it's done, I'm fine. Besides, I see this as a pickle jar scenario."

"Pickle jar?"

"Yeah. We loosened it for them," Danny smiled wide.

Steve just laughed, tension and slight annoyance draining for him. He knew Danny would be good for him, he just didn't realize how it would affect every part of his life, even the little corners. 

*

"Congratulations and all that, but why are you here?" Chin asked. 

"Because he's a control freak," Danny answered for everyone. "You've been working for him long enough, I'm sure you realized that before."

"I think this deserves a proper update," Steve told them all, ignoring Danny's comments though everyone else thought they were funny. "I think Danny and I will sleep better tonight having all the facts' knowing everything's put to rest."

"Sleep better, huh? If you're worried about how to get to sleep you're doing it wrong," Lou deadpanned and both Danny and Kono snorted trying to keep their laughter in.

"Okay, well," Chin kept going. "Thanks to Danny's witness statement, we knew that Gray had been selling footage she'd illegally taken from the ORC and was hosting on a cloud server."

"We recovered a laptop at the scene that proved to be the smoking gun in all of this," Lou continued, tag teaming the explanations with Chin.

"Tyrone and his cousin didn't have a very secure computer so getting in was relatively easy. Jerry got access to the cloud and to Gray's new email address and was able to get the IP of where the files were sent to."

"And that led us to slippery bastard Curtis Lyons."

Kono took over. "He was so careful with everything else but he used a web based email client to retrieve the videos and he did it on his cell over the DS Oil wifi. Agent Jones cloned the cell phone and not only did that mean we could arrest Lyons, but that led to an underground porn ring where we found a lot of videos of omegas who had been.... taken advantage of."

Lou started again. "As soon as the Oil company found out what we were arresting him for, they fell over themselves to give forensic IT specialists a look at their systems to see what else he was doing. Jerry's spending the time liaising over that but we got 'em. We're sure of it."

"Agent Jones and I took a lot of pleasure in marching him out of there in front of everybody," Kono said. "Sorry, boss. We know you wanted to do it. Maybe next time."

"There better not be a next time," Steve answered.

"Kono, can I have a private word?" Danny asked, a sudden thought occurring to him in reminder and as she had sounded like she was the one to view some of the things on that website, he thought she'd be best to speak to.

"Sure."

He pulled her slightly aside, noting how Steve gave them an unhappy glare but Danny just shot him one back making sure he'd stay put speaking to Lou and Chin and give him a minute of privacy. "When I was taken to the hospital I had on a pair of shorts, what happened to those?" he asked quietly.

"They would have been booked into evidence. Why?"

"I took an SD card out of the camera Tyrone was using. It was in one of the pockets. I don't want anybody seeing what's on that thing, least of all Steve," he finished pointedly, hoping she understood him and she nodded slowly.

"Right. I can't promise you anything but I'll take a look at the chain of evidence and see if it was logged separately. If not, I'll see what i can do about disappearing it. But if it has been logged on its own, it's likely someone already knows what's on it."

"I know. It's my own fault, I should have thought about it sooner."

"You've been preoccupied. It's understandable. She didn't… did she have anything of you that she could have already sold on?"

"I don't think so but it's a possibility that's already plagued my mind. Please, if you can do everything you can to make sure nothing gets out. It's not just for my sake but for Steve's, too. I don't know what he'd do if he knew there were recordings of me out there. Hell, I've been careful not to allude to the fact the ORC has some on its secure servers as it is."

"I've got your back, brah," she said as she put a hand to his shoulder. 

"Hey," Steve called over the short distance to them. Clearly his patience on how long he could be out of earshot of Danny or allow another alpha near him had run out. He wandered over and put his arm around Danny, pulling him in for a kiss that could bruise their lips, he pressed so hard. "What's so secretive over here?" he asked as he pulled back. 

Kono kept her hands halfway up where Steve could see them. "Nothing, boss. Danny was just asking me to make sure you didn't get any alone time with Lyons. He thinks you'd go primeval on his ass given half a chance," she winked at the omega who let out a breath of relief that she'd covered for them.

Steve gripped tighter around Danny's shoulder then let his hand slip down Danny's back to his waist. He may not have believed Kono's reason, but Steve was going to let it slide. "As much as I like seeing you get along with my team, now isn't the time for you to be mingling with a bunch of alphas, even if I do trust them. Time to go home," he told Danny, who patted Steve's chest.

"Neanderthal," Danny muttered though it was indulgent rather than accusatory.

*

They hadn't truly realized how tired they were. Their bodies were still recovering from a full night of bond sex and on a day where they should have just been nesting in the home, they'd been out traveling through half of Honolulu.

All they really had the energy to do was collapse on the couch and order pizza (and Steve genuinely asked if it could be delivered by a beta, which garnered an eye roll from Danny as he listened to Steve's side of the conversation trying to explain why).

With their stomachs full, hunger and thirst sated, they sat back and pulled the blanket around themselves again as they mindlessly watched an hour or two of a basic action movie while gently exploring each others' body with easy touches and stroking fingers. 

"I was just thinking," Danny started. "The last thing I ever wanted was an arranged marriage. The older I got the more likely it was that if I got caught, an ORC would set me up with the first alpha they found on a list. That's what I figured anyway. And yet, when you think about it, that's pretty much what I did to myself."

"A lot has happened in the last four days. I can barely believe it myself. Ever since Catherine left the guys have been ragging on me about maybe looking into finding an omega rather than a beta. Maybe that was playing on my mind when we met," Steve admitted. 

"We've still got a lot to learn about each other," Danny said.

"That's the fun part," he nudged his omega. "Wanna do some more learning in bed?"

Danny let his head fall back for a moment. "How do you have the energy for that?"

"I didn't have as many orgasms as you did last night. Or this morning."

"Sucks to be an alpha then, doesn't it," Danny said then began extracting himself from the blanket. "But bed does sound good. And I can teach you something very important right now," he said as Steve took his hand and stood so they could begin walking upstairs. 

"And what's that?"

"We will not be having sex every night. Tonight can be the first of many when we just go to sleep when our heads hit the pillow."

"Aw," Steve mock pouted as they climbed the stairs, Danny taking them a little slower as he'd left his cane behind. Hell, he hadn't used it all day even though he really should, but he'd left it at home that morning and now he was paying the price for it and knew he should take some pain relief before bed. "But I've been good today. I didn't react to other alphas around you like I could have."

"And what, you think you deserve some kind of reward? That's not how this works," Danny chastised.

They walked into the bedroom and it was only then that they remembered they hadn't made the bed. Or changed the sheets. 

Danny screwed his nose up. "Man, it kinda stinks in here."

Steve hugged Danny from behind. "It smells of everything we did last night," he said as he helped Danny unbutton his shirt. "You sure you want tonight to be the first night we don't have sex? Any reward you give me benefits both of us."

"Aw, fuck," Danny answered, willpower shot to all hell.


	15. Coda

_Ten weeks later..._

Danny didn't look any different. He looked better. 

That was to be expected, of course. His knee had healed enough that he could stop using the cane and not need to take any pain relief after putting pressure on it. The yellow jaundice had cleared up after the overdose of Nexus, having retreated slowly over the course of a few weeks until he looked a regular human color again. 

His injuries were a thing of the past and even his outlook on life had been more positive. 

He really liked Steve's team. He'd been hanging out at the Five-0 headquarters sometimes and they'd asked him for his input occasionally and he loved helping them even though he only ever had parts of the information since he didn't have full access. But it beat the boredom of being a stay at home husband.

He couldn't really complain about that though as it had been his decision to take his time deciding what he wanted to do next. 

But now his body had made his mind up for him and maybe a part of him stalled on his decisions since he knew it was coming. 

He threw the stick in the trash and headed out of the restroom and back down the corridor. As he'd been standing here, he'd heard what sounded like Five-0 returning from their case. 

"Well, was I right?" Danny asked as he followed them back in. 

"The wife was in on it," Chin admitted. 

"I knew it. Pay up," Danny told them all and each member, except for Steve, all ponied up their ten dollar bills. 

As Danny looked at Steve expectantly, the alpha just held his hands up. "I didn't bet against you."

"You didn't bet at all. It would take a crowbar to open that wallet of yours," Danny accused him.

"It's good having you around, brah. We like having someone who can bring the boss down a peg or two," Kono laughed as she took off her protective vest. "Steve, don't put him in the basement with Jerry."

"Why would I be in the basement?" Danny asked, openly confused. 

"Steve didn't talk to you yet?" Chin asked. 

"I have no idea what you're talking about so I'm thinking no, he did not. Steve? Babe?"

Steve sighed, unhappy to be doing this among all of them, but he didn't seem to have a choice. "Look, I just don't know if it is the right decision. The team is made up of alphas for a reason. We said we were done with other sub-genders after Catherine left. She was the third beta who didn't make it," he reminded them.

"I'm not sure how your biology lessons went growing up, but Danny is an omega. Very different from a beta," Lou reminded him. 

"And technically he wouldn't be on the team. He's not a cop so he's not going to get a badge." Chin also said. 

"Wait, you guys are thinking about me being on the team? Or what, consulting? Like Jerry does." Danny asked, trying to understand what was going on. 

"Yes, and we all agreed you would stay at the office and not be involved in active crime scenes or chasing down leads," Kono told him. "We want to protect our omega even if you can handle yourself."

"Okay, but I'm not 'your' omega. I'm _**his**_ omega," Danny pointed at Steve who was keeping quite a blank face at the current discussion but his crossed arms spoke volumes.

"We know that but you're ohana," Kono said. "And we're all alphas. It's in our nature. What do you say, though? You've helped us out a lot over the last few months, we just wanted to make it official."

"And looks like Steve was never going to get round to asking you so it's up to us to do the asking," Lou said. 

"Uhm," Danny began, shuffling his feet a little. "I'm flattered. It's a great offer and I really want to say yes. You know I always wanted to be a cop and maybe doing some consulting with you guys is the closest I'll ever get."

"I sense a but coming," Lou put in. 

"No but, well, not from me," Danny explained. "I just think you should have all the facts before making any decisions."

"What facts?" Steve finally spoke. "If this is about me, I might have been hesitant but honestly, having you here would make me happy. We'd see a lot more of each other, but it's not a full time thing, so it gives you a chance to combine it with taking classes or something."

"Steve, it's not that."

"Then what is it?"

"I'm pregnant."

There was a silence in the room. The kind where it made your eardrums strain to hear any noise and it made Danny more aware of the traffic outside and the breeze in the trees. But it was quickly shattered by Steve's beaming smile. "You're pregnant?" he asked, needing to hear it again. 

"Well, I peed on a stick and it said positive. I need to go to a doctor and confirm but there's a reason I took the test in the first place."

"You're pregnant," Steve seemed blissed out as he came closer, clutching Danny's face in his hands and kissing him soundly before hugging him tight, even picking him up in the air in his excitement. The others all piled in, voicing their congratulations and patting them on the back. 

Lou had disappeared but returned with cigars and beer for those who wanted and were able to partake and then fetched some safer, pregnancy-friendly versions for Danny. It seemed the case had been forgotten now that the good news had been delivered.

They all moved into Steve's office where Danny was guided to sit down by the four protective alphas in his life. Steve sat next to him on the sofa, arm flung around the back of his shoulders while the other rubbed Danny's stomach. 

The team perched or sat nearby and everyone seemed excited, talking about what to buy the new addition to their ohana, putting bets on whether it would be a boy or a girl. When Kono began trying to work out what school district they'd be living in, Danny put a stop to everything. 

"Wait, hold on a second. About this whole consulting gig?" he asked expectantly and the others laughed as they remembered how the conversation had started.

"Guess that's up to Steve again," Chin pointed to their boss. 

"Let's take it a case at a time," Steve suggested, not wanting to upset anyone, least of all Danny who he'd known before asking him would be eager to spend more time helping them out. But there were real concerns now that he was pregnant. And Steve's protective instincts had kicked in - part of him wanted to rush home with Danny and provide for him but he knew what he'd signed up for with this omega and that would never fly.

"Okay, but can you imagine Steve coming to work with a baby strapped to him?" Kono asked and everyone (except Steve) descended into hysterics at the mental image.


End file.
